


Candyman

by sandwichgardener



Category: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - All Media Types, Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: "Oompa Loompas" but make them a gang, Aged-Up Character(s), Bad Parenting, Basically don't count on Mike/Violet lasting, Compulsory Heterosexuality, Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, F/M, Fake golden ticket, Fat Shaming, Flashbacks, Homophobia, Influenced by all adaptations (even the obscure ones), Internalized Fatphobia, Internalized Homophobia, It's like Riverdale (kinda), Love Triangles, Manipulation, Mike Teavee is gay and in denial, Not Canon Compliant, One-Sided Attraction, Poverty, Retelling, Roald Dahl would hate this, Satire, Screenplay rules are made to be broken, Screenplay/Script Format, Slugworth is really after ideas, So let's talk about that, Surprisingly not crack, Survival Horror, Teenage Drama, The Gloops speak German with each other, The scrapped book kids are repurposed for content, There's a pop soundtrack, Toxic Masculinity, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Willy Wonka is being investigated by the FBI, Wonka firing all his workers at once would've RUINED the economy, but this is a teen drama first and it shows
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:34:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 79,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26088028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sandwichgardener/pseuds/sandwichgardener
Summary: Following the success of the smash hit tv show Riverdale, the natural progression is to adapt another beloved intellectual property from the mid-20th century: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.The world is on fire with Wonkamania after the golden ticket announcement, but Charlie, a simple boy-next-door, is occupied with getting his family through the day. Dreams are dreams for a reason, after all.We know how the story goes, but we've never known it quite like this.Now playing: "S1E7 - If your father were here" in which the outside world gets tougher and Charlie goes clubbing.
Relationships: Charlie Bucket & Augustus Gloop, Charlie Bucket & Mike Teavee, Charlie Bucket/Veruca Salt, Frau Gloop & Violet Beauregarde, Mike Teavee & Violet Beauregarde, Violet Beauregarde & Veruca Salt, Violet Beauregarde/Mike Teavee
Comments: 5
Kudos: 20





	1. S1E1 - (I've got a) Golden Ticket

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which five golden tickets are found and Charlie gets a strange offer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for:  
> The Bucket's extreme money troubles, dementia/memory loss, withholding of food and related manipulation (Scarlett Beauregarde is a bad mother), vaguely implied alcoholism, and homophobic language.
> 
> The Candyman soundtrack can be found in this playlist:  
> https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3vdfm1tGmdX1K7GtsepbH8?si=5QZ9y0ifRZu7D__RjSmEaw

A dark screen. Suddenly, a logo fades in. It reads ”Wonkavision presents” in a delicious-looking font. In the background, a soft, nostalgic instrumental plays a familiar tune.

VOICEOVER

”Who can take a sunrise, sprinkle it with dew, cover it in chocolate and a miracle or two?”

**INT. Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

We see various shots. A forest made out of candy, sugar drops on jellied blades of grass, a lustrouschocolate river flowing from a velvety chocolate waterfall. It’s magical.

VOICEOVER

”The candy man!”

A man steps into frame. About thirty years old, he has the good looks of Ryan Gosling and the wacky air of Ryan Reynolds, despite being played by neither of them. He has a dark goatee. He is wearing a candy red suit, a lavender purple button up shirt, and a shamrock printed bow tie about the size of his hand. This is WILLY WONKA.

Willy laughs heartily, a simple ”haha”.

VOICEOVER

”Oh, the candy man can.”

Willy looks directly at the camera.

WILLY WONKA

”Hi! I’m Willy Wonka the second, and boy, do I have a treat for you!”

The screen flickers like an old tv, a block of grey running over Willy’s face before disappearing.

WILLY WONKA

”For the past thirty years, my chocolate factory has been closed to the public.”

He produces a chocolate bar-sized golden ticket from inside his sleeve.

WILLY WONKA

”In five Wonka Bars, a golden ticket will be hidden. Ah, just like this one, haha."

Willy puts the whole ticket in his mouth and chews it up, like the world’s thinnest stick of gum.

WILLY WONKA

(Mouth full)

”Of course, they won’t be edible. Don’t eat paper, kids!”

He swallows and continues. The screen very briefly goes black before continuing mid-sentence, slightly zoomed out. We can now see the screen round inwards in the edges, like that of an old box television. On screen, the video is a bit grainier than previously.

WILLY WONKA

”Five youngsters - that’s people under eighteen, for the youngsters at home - will be invited to a special tour of the factory. In addition, one of these youngsters will receive a special prize, beyond... anything you could ever imagine!

The camera continues to zoom out from the tv as he says this. We now see the whole tv, and behind it, chunks of wall paper peeling off a depressing grey wall. The room is lit up by a single sad lamp. In the corner, we can see the back of somebody’s head, equally grey. Willy’s commercial is like a breath of fresh air in this room.

WILLY WONKA

”And now, I must implore you: go! Search! The tickets are available in stores now, worldwide! Go! Shut off your-"

The television dies. The lamp also dies. In the corner, the head moves.

JOE (OFF SCREEN)

”Charlie?”

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room.**

Angle on the bed, filled with THE ELDERS: Joe and Georgina, George and Josephine, in their 70’s, the four grandparents of Charlie Bucket, all bed ridden in their old age. In the middle, at the section where their legs all intersect, sits CHARLIE. Teenaged, would be handsome if he cleaned up, with messy brown hair and a shirt that blatantly stopped fitting him five years ago. It hikes up to his elbows, tight around the barest hint at muscle, as he rises from the bed.

CHARLIE

”Power’s out early today.”

He retrieves a stack of blankets from under the bed and helps spread them out over the elders.

JOE

”That Willy Wonka looked just like his father did back in the day, you know?”

CHARLIE

”Wow.”

JOE

”He was a genius, that man. Did you know he invented a new way of making chocolate ice cream that-”

CHARLIE

”Would stay cold, even if you left it out in the sun all day? Yes, you’ve told me, grandpa Joe.”

JOE

”Back then, we could’ve afforded more than fifteen minutes of power. Generous to his employees, that man.”

Charlie looks at Joe, sadly.

GEORGE

”But now, we can’t. That’s that.”

CHARLIE

”I can’t imagine why he’d lay you off.”

JOE

”He laid everyone off, my boy. As much a mystery to me as to everyone else, and certainly nothing to be upset about.”

CHARLIE

”Nobody ever comes in or out, and yet that single factory produces chocolate for the whole world. I- I’d love to find out how he does it.”

JOE

”I think I’d do just about anything to go back one last time."

GEORGE

”Would you shut up and let the rest of us get some sleep?”

GEORGINA

”George!”

Charlie tucks them into the last blanket.

CHARLIE

”It’d be pretty amazing to get one of those tickets, huh?”

Joe nods solemnly.

Camera pans out of a window in the room, a sizable hole in the glass. Snowflakes blow through the hole and fall gently outside. The camera pans up, until we can only see snowflakes and white sky, and then pans down, transitioning to:

**EXT. Gloops Wurstfabrik, Germany.**

Song playing over this exterior shot: _Keine Maschine_ by Tim Bendzko.

Sausages dangle in the windows underneath a sign reading ”Gloops Wurstfabrik”, painted black, red, and yellow, font reminiscent of sausages. A round, kindly looking woman tries to open the red painted door with her elbow. FRAU GLOOP carries two boxes of chocolate bars, branded Wonka, as well as two over-filled grocery bags hanging from her arms. She gets the door open and enters.

**INT. Gloops Wurstfabrik.**

The camera follows the Frau as she maneuvers through the store, ducking under a rack of meat to get behind the counter where her husband, HERR GLOOP, chops meat with a cleaver. She gives him a quick peck on the cheek.

FRAU

”Hallo, liebe.”

HERR

(Gives a manly grunt in response)

FRAU continues, moving around a freezer locker and up a narrow staircase, still carrying her bags and boxes. She enters a small apartment. It’s messy, dishes piling up by the dozen in the open kitchen. She makes room on the counter and places the grocery bags there, continuing with the chocolate boxes to a closed door. She knocks.

FRAU

(Knock-shouting)

”Augustus? Liebling? Die chocolate ist da!”

When the door doesn’t open, she opens it. Augustus’ room is a mess, more dishes stacked on an otherwise unused desk, bed unmade. Sitting on the bed is AUGUSTUS GLOOP - teenaged, chubby, wearing a plain t-shirt that was a different color when he first got it. Augustus doesn’t look up, licking food grease from his fingers.

FRAU

”Augustus! Die wäsche!”

AUGUSTUS

(Annoyed)

”Jaaaa, mama.”

She places the boxes on an unused desk and motions for him to get up.

FRAU

”Was sagst du?”

AUGUSTUS

”Dank, mama.”

Augustus gets up to get a chocolate bar. The Frau kisses him on the check with all the love she has. She has a lot of it. Maybe even too much.

FRAU

”Bitte, liebling.”

She gathers his dirty laundry, holding down a sigh as she steps around the dishes, and carries the laundry out of the room. The camera follows her as she makes her way back downstairs, giving us a brief glimpse of Augustus opening a chocolate bar through his open door. There’s a washing machine in a back room, and as the Frau kneels to put the laundry in, we hear a shout.

AUGUSTUS (OFF SCREEN)

”Mama!!!”

Cut to:

**INT. Gloops Wurstfabrik** , but this time, on tv.

We know it’s tv because of a banner at the bottom of the screen, reading ”FIRST GOLDEN TICKET FOUND! GERMAN BOY TELLS ALL!” Augustus stands in the center, his mother on his left, one arm comfortingly around him. In the back, the Herr is chopping meat.

REPORTER 1 (OFF SCREEN)

(Distinctly american)

”Augustus, Augustus! How did you find the ticket?”

AUGUSTUS

(In English, but with a German accent)

”Well, I’m eating the Wonka Bar, and I feel something thin, like paper, and I think, this hasn’t happened since the time I accidentally ate the wrapper, so what I did is I checked if I had eaten the wrapper, and I found the golden ticket!”

REPORTER 1 (OFF SCREEN)

”And how did the ticket taste?”

AUGUSTUS

”Weird mouthfeel, no taste. Would not recommend.”

Off screen, different reporters shout different questions over each other. Someone asks how they feel, and the Frau answers.

FRAU

(Also in English, but with a German accent)

”He’s always loved the Wonka candy. This will be such a happy experience for him!”

The Frau kisses her son on the forehead.

FRAU

(Under her breath)

”You’ll do great, liebling. Du verdient es, okay?

AUGUSTUS

(Embarrassed, under his breath)

”Mama! Die kamera!”

They smile for the camera. The Frau pulls her son a little closer, but he doesn’t react, already opening another Wonka Bar. The screen goes out, and we once again zoom out to find ourselves in:

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room.**

GEORGE

”I thought young Wonka said not to eat paper.”

Charlie laughs.

JOSEPHINE

(Like a classic old lady)

”Who?”

Charlie stops laughing. Joe sighs.

JOE

”We can’t all be fine forever. Age has a way of catching up with you.”

GEORGINA

”The poor dear.”

Josephine looks at them, confused look in her eye.

GEORGE

(Surprisingly tenderly for a grumpy old man)

”We’re your family, Josephine. You’re safe.”

JOSEPHINE

”Oh. Who’s he?”

She points at Charlie. Charlie smiles.

CHARLIE

”Nobody. I’m nobody.”

**EXT. A typical Treaticetown street, early morning**.

Song playing over this scene: _High Hopes_ by Panic! At The Disco.

Charlie is riding a bike, bag of newspapers slung around his shoulder. We see the bike wheels roll on the pavement as Charlie systematically throws newspapers on the doorsteps of the neat townhouses he’s passing.

He turns a corner and stops, taking in a breath.

At the end of the street, we see WILLY WONKA’S CHOCOLATE FACTORY. Behind it, the sun rises, casting a golden glow over the Wonka towers. The city is merely an afterthought in the shadow of the factory. The towers are tall, stretching towards the sky. Once upon a time, the factory was painted bright red, purple, and green, but the paint has long since faded. For a brief moment, the sun revives the paint, and we see a glimpse of what the factory might’ve been, before it closed to the public. The tallest chimney, smoke joining the clouds, has a gigantic shamrock-patterned bow tie. It’s wacky and just a little beautiful.

Charlie gazes wistfully at the factory, a young man reminiscing about when he was a child and thought nothing more fantastic.

And then the bike wheels continue rolling.

**EXT. The Bucket residence.**

Later in the morning, the bike slows down in front of a worn-down wooden fence. Charlie gets off the bike, opens a crooked gate, and leads the bike into the yard.

The house is nothing more than a shack, roof half collapsed. Their chimney is missing several bricks at the top, and climbing vines drape over a window, almost obscuring it completely. In front of the house kneels GERALDINE BUCKET, Charlie’s mother, worn down, bags under her eyes. She’s weeding a small, barren vegetable garden. Charlie puts the bike aside and approaches, rooting through his pockets.

GERALDINE

(Has a frail voice, soft but insecure)

”Hey, sunshine.”

CHARLIE

”Hi, mom.”

GERALDINE

”Not much of a crop today, either, but I think we’ll manage, alright?”

Charlie retrieves some money from his pocket and hands it toher.

CHARLIE

”Here’s this week’s pay. Take it.”

GERALDINE

(Hesitant)

”No, sunshine... I can’t take this, this is your money! You should be spending it on something fun, like chocolate, or maybe even college...?”

CHARLIE

”Mom...”

GERALDINE

”I know, sunshine, I know, but your father and I have been talking and we think you stand a chance! There are plenty of scholarships for disprivileged kids, and...”

CHARLIE

”Mom! It’s fine. Take it.”

Geraldine takes it, reluctantly.

GERALDINE

”You’d be the first Bucket in college since your grandpa George.”

CHARLIE

”Well, grandpa George’s degree isn’t helping us now, is it?”

They sit on this.

CHARLIE

”You and dad have your hands full as it is, and you don’t need the elders full time on top of that. I’m fine. I’ll stay here and take care of them, and I’ll ask to double my bike route. I’ll get a second job, if I have to. We’ll get through this together.”

They hug.

GERALDINE

(Whisper)

”Cheer up, Charlie.”

Charlie pats his mother on the back and heads inside.

**INT. The Bucket Residence, kitchen.**

JACK BUCKET is flipping through a magazine, looking for job offers. Jack might’ve been handsome, once, but when the last job laid him off, they made him leave his good looks with them.

JACK

”So, the college talk, huh?”

CHARLIE

”I’m not in the mood, dad.”

JACK

”I’m not gonna bother ya.”

Jack puts down the newspaper. Charlie enters the kitchen, opening a cupboard and getting a misty glass. He tries the tap for water, fills the glass, and downs it.

JACK

”So how about those golden tickets? You gonna go for it?”

CHARLIE

”Dad, we only expense one Wonka Bar per year, and this year it’s for my graduation.”

JACK

”Which is coming up pretty soon!”

CHARLIE

”It’s in four months.”

JACK

”Oh, come on, kid. Don’t you want to? You used to build whole models of that factory when you were a kid!”

Charlie drops his newspaper bag on the floor and turns around, upset.

CHARLIE

”Of course I _want to_ , dad, but let’s face it. This whole thing is about money. Money’s what increases your chances, and we don’t have a lot of it as is."

He gestures vaguely at the newspaper, open to the job section. Jack’s face sinks.

CHARLIE

”We can’t live on chocolate just soI can feel like a kid again.”

Charlie sits down in an unstable kitchen chair. Jack sits down next to him, trying to comfort.

JACK

”Hey, I’m sorry, kiddo.”

CHARLIE

”Don’t be. Anyway, it’s just a matter of time until some rich kid spends millions just to find one of these things."

**EXT. The Salt Mansion, England.**

Establishing shot. A classic british violin plays in the background as we see a grandiose victorian mansion, complete with perfectly trimmed hedges in the garden outside. The centerpiece of the garden is a squirrel topiary cracking a nut.

**INT. The Salt Mansion, Veruca’s room.**

The room is lavish, with a high ceiling, tall victorian windows, and a gorgeous golden-framed mirror. Reflected in the mirror, we see a lavish four poster king sized bed, and sitting in it, VERUCA SALT. Veruca is the quintessential high school popular girl, wearing a low cut white blouse, a skirt at just the right length, and a string of real white pearls. Her makeup is, as the kids would say, on fleek. To fulfill our show diversity quota, she is also black. Veruca is on her phone, which is huge and has a case with light pink roses.

She briefly looks up as we see her father, RUPERT SALT, come into mirror frame. Also black, he’s wearing a crisp suit and a watch that easily costs more than Charlie’s whole life would. Trust Rupert, he knows these things.

RUPERT

(Has a British accent)

”Hey, sweetheart.”

Veruca looks back at her phone. From this point on, the scene has regular camera angles.

VERUCA

(Also has a British accent)

”What is it now?”

RUPERT

”Pay day is coming up. I was thinking you could come down to the office, I show you how to balance the books, to run a business?”

VERUCA

”Full offense, dad, but I couldn’t care less about the company. It’s trite, and hackneyed, and, pardon the wordplay, nuts. Your job is literally nuts.”

RUPERT

”Well, this is important stuff. You won’t learn these things through your tiktoks, or your instagrams, or on the facebooks.”

VERUCA

”Instagram. It’s just Instagram, dad, and nobody is even on Facebook anymore, because it’s a site for boomers and scam artists and poor people.”

Rupert sighs and starts making his way out of his room.

VERUCA

”Get me a golden ticket.”

Rupert turns around, brow furrowed.

VERUCA

”Golden tickets are all anyone is talking about. It would be major clout.”

Rupert looks like he’s about to say something. Veruca looks up from her phone. She smiles like the devil, knowing full well how to wrap her dad around her little finger.

VERUCA

”I’ll come with you to the office, or whatever.”

Cut immediately. _Come & Go_ by Juice WRLD and Marshmello plays as we see a montage of various shots:

**INT. The Nutcorp head office.**

Rupert holds a presentation for a well dressed business board. Veruca sits with them at the table, on her phone. Behind Rupert, we can see graphs. He motions and speaks, but we can’t hear what he says. When the board members shake their heads, he slams his fist on the table.

**EXT. A back alley.**

Rupert hands a heavy envelope to a gathering of men in suits, back turned to the camera. We never see their faces. One of them shakes Rupert’s hand. It’s a stern, singular handshake, and we can’t tell whose grip is the stronger.

**EXT. A Nutcorp factory.**

Rupert supervises the loading bay as several unmarked trucks pull in. One backs up right in front of him. The back door opens. We see Rupert silhouetted against dozens of boxes of chocolate bars, all waiting to be unpacked.

**INT. The same Nutcorp factory.**

Rupert stands on a raised platform, looking down on a room filled with workers, tables, and raised travelators. Behind him, Veruca stands, looking at her phone. He raises both hands in a ”let there be light” type of gesture, and the chocolate boxes roll out on the travelators. As the workers start unpacking the boxes, Rupert looks back and smiles at his daughter. She rolls her eyes and walks away.

Outside the windows, the sun rises and sets as the workers keep unpacking. Three cycles of this later, we see the worker in the center of the screen slide a golden ticket out of a chocolate bar.

Rupert is there immediately, handing over a cheque with several zeroes on it to the worker and slipping the golden ticket into an equally golden envelope. He puts it in his suit pocket and then claps loudly. The other workers, tired and envious, join him in clapping.

**INT. Veruca’s room**.

The song fades out as Rupert enters mirror frame and hands Veruca the golden envelope. She puts away her phone, opens the envelope, and pulls out the ticket, her face not changing.

VERUCA

”I thought it’d be shinier.”

**EXT. The Salt Mansion** , but this time, on tv.

The banner at the bottom of the screen reads ”VIRAL GOLDEN TICKET SENSATION VERUCA SALT USED FATHER’S NUT BUSINESS TO FIND TICKET”. Veruca poses center camera, wearing an expensive soft pink dress and plenty of golden jewelry, to complement the ticket she’s holding.

REPORTER 2 (OFF SCREEN)

”Veruca, what made you go to these lengths for a ticket?”

VERUCA

”Are you blind? Look at it. Look at the ticket. God, do your job.”

She poses with the ticket and blows a kiss to the camera. The tv goes dark and zooms out, and we are once again in:

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room, afternoon.**

JOE

”Well, at least she’s a beauty.”

Charlie looks away, the slightest hint of blush on his cheeks. He’s sitting on the bed with the elders, for optimal tv view.

GEORGE

”Too bad about the attitude. Nasty girl, that one.”

Jack and Geraldine enter. Geraldine has her arms behind her back. Charlie looks up.

CHARLIE

”Oh, hey, dad... and mom... wait.”

Geraldine has a trickster smile as she brings out a small, flat present wrapped in brown paper.

JACK

”With all the ticket stuff going on, we thought we might expense a little something early.”

Geraldine half-dances forward to Charlie and hands the present to him.

GERALDINE

”Happy future graduation, sunshine.”

Charlie’s not necessarily surprised, but there’s a little bit of it in there as he opens the present. Inside, we see a Wonka Bar.

CHARLIE

”Thanks! I mean, you-”

JOE

”Open it, my boy! Let’s see that golden ticket.”

Charlie slowly opens the Wonka Bar wrapper. There isn’t a golden ticket in there. All energy the scene previously had is dispelled.

JOE

”Ah well. That’s that.”

Charlie tries to smile, but we can see it hurts a little bit. Is it because of the wasted expense, or because there isn’t a ticket in there? Both. It’s both.

JACK

”Well, at least you’ve got the chocolate.”

Charlie starts breaking the chocolate bar into evenly sized pieces and handing them out.

GERALDINE

”Charlie...”

CHARLIE

”No. Take it. We don’t have chocolate every day. I’m not gonna hoard it so you can feel better.”

Everyone relucantly takes their chocolate piece. They all chew slowly, making the most of this once-per-year-treat.

Charlie takes the wrapper, containing his piece, and rises from the bed.

CHARLIE

”I’ve got a... thing. Sorry.”

He exits. The adults all look sad.

GEORGINA

”He works too hard for a boy his age! He should be out, having fun, courting ladies!”

JACK

”Well, with the four of you bedridden for the past twenty years, it takes a lot to keep the house running.”

GEORGE

”Yes, and how’s job hunting going, Jack? How are you providing?”

The squabble continues. Meanwhile, the camera zooms out, and out, until we go through the broken window and outside of the house. Charlie is standing by the door, eating chocolate and trying his very best not to cry.

**INT. The Beauregarde House, America** , on tv.

The banner at the bottom of the screen reads ”WINNER TAKES IT ALL: GUM CHAMPION SWITCHES TO CHOCOLATE?”. Two women stand next to each other, the elder one slightly more center screen despite the younger being the one to hold the ticket. Behind them, shelves are covered in gold trophies.

The younger, to the left, is VIOLET BEAUREGARDE. Thin, blonde, hair in a perfect ponytail. Violet is wearing a bright blue hoodie and jean shorts. She’s chewing gum. Next to her, mother SCARLETT BEAUREGARDE might as well be her older sister. Scarlett’s hair is meticulously styled in perfect curls. She’s wearing high waisted jeans that show off her figure, and a blue blouse with just the right amount of cleavage.

REPORTER 3 (OFF SCREEN)

”Violet, you’re a world record gum chewing champion, right?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Yes. This piece, I’ve been working on for three months. It’s already a record, now it’s just a matter of how high I’ll set it.”

REPORTER 3 (OFF SCREEN)

”How did you find yourself with this ticket?”

SCARLETT

(Has a little bit of a country dialect)

”I’ll take this one. Violet has always been a very driven girl, even when she was a toddler. This trophy, she won when she was just three years old, for being able to do a double cartwheel.”

Scarlett indicates one of many, many, many first place trophies.

SCARLETT

”When that charming (and dare I say it, handsome?) Mister Wonka announced a special prize, it was only natural that Violet would go for it. Chocolate contains antioxidants, you know. We had no problem incorporating that into her diet.”

REPORTER 3 (OFF SCREEN)

”So you intend to get that prize, then?”

The question is obviously aimed at Violet. Scarlett makes a move to answer, but is ignored by the held out microphone. Violet glances at her mother, and then back at the camera. She smiles with just her mouth.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Yes.”

SCARLETT

”Tell them why, Violet.”

Violet pauses briefly.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Because I’m a winner.”

**INT. The Beauregarde House** , off tv.

Outside a window, a news van pulls out of the driveway. In the foreground, Violet and Scarlett face each other. When the van is out of sight, Violet’s posture immediately worsens.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Can I make a shake now?”

SCARLETT

”What’s the time?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Please, I haven’t eaten since yesterday. The crew is gone now, nobody’s watching.”

SCARLETT

(Inhales first)

”Honey, it’s late. You might as well wait until dinner. You wouldn’t want to mess up your schedule, would you? The body doesn’t respond well to irregular meals. You’ll bloat. Do you want to bloat? Do you want to be fat?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”No.”

Violet is visibly exhausted.

SCARLETT

”Good. Posture.”

Violet corrects her posture. She makes a face, though, as if it hurts to stand up straight.

SCARLETT

”People want winners who look like winners. Nobody would ever root for a fat girl. That disgusting German family doesn’t stand a chance against you.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Scarlett, I’m starving.”

SCARLETT

”Chew your gum faster. That’ll stave off the hunger. You don’t want to be a loser, do you?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”No, mom.”

SCARLETT

”Huh?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum faster)

”No, Scarlett.

SCARLETT

”And why is that?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum as if her life depends on it)

”Because nobody loves a loser.”

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room, night.**

Outside the broken window, snow is softly falling. It’s dark outside, but the horizon is lit up by a string of golden lights: Treaticetown street lights in the distance. The vision is interrupted by Charlie, hanging a blanket over the window to keep the cold out.

The elders are all asleep, except for Joe, who watches Charlie light a half-burned candle in a dull candle holder.

JOE

”We’ll get it next time, my boy.”

CHARLIE

”There won’t be a next time.”

He’s regretful. Joe recognizes this and makes a thinking face.

JOE

”As a matter of fact, I still have a few coins left from the old factory. They paid us well, back in the day.”

CHARLIE

”Yeah, so I’ve heard - grandpa, what are you saying?”

JOE

”You’ve got the spark, I can feel it. You’re destined to find this ticket, and so, I say we have another shot, you and I."

Joe pulls out a small pouch and fishes a couple coins out of it. They shine in the candlelight, a luxury you don’t see every day. Charlie startles, almost lighting the blanket over the window on fire. He immediately gets closer to the bed, carefully placing the candle on a nearby table.

CHARLIE

”Grandpa Joe!”

JOE

”This was originally going to towards your college fund, but-”

CHARLIE

”But I’m not going to college.”

JOE

”We’ll see about that, my boy. College aside, well, this is as good a time as any to spend it.”

CHARLIE

(Unintentionally loud)

”This is money we need!”

JOE

(Low)

”Shhhhh, don’t wake them up. Charlie...”

Joe turns the coins in his hands. Charlie just looks at him, ever so slightly worried.

JOE

”This is my money, Charlie, and I want to give it one more shot. You go out, you buy a bar, and we open it together. This time, our luck will turn, I know it.”

Charlie looks about to object, but Joe continues.

JOE

”I need to see it again.”

Charlie sighs, but there’s a small smile on his lips. He’s considering the idea of getting the ticket, going on the tour of this mythical place, and as impractical as it is, his grandfather tends to be right about these things. If he says no, who knows what he’ll miss?

CHARLIE

(Trying to keep his cool)

”Fine. One bar. And if I find out you have more hidden money, I take it for real food, got it?”

Joe smiles.

**EXT.** **Bill’s Candy Shop, night.**

Charlie speeds it to the shop on his bike. He pulls up and quickly struggles off the bike to make it into the store before closing.

The door has glass panes, which are riddled with lost dog-posters, advertisements for fun events, and stickers that proudly say ”Wonka Bars sold here!”. In the upper pane, there’s space enough to see that BILL THE CANDY MAN is approaching, about ready to flip the shop sign to closed and call it a day.

Charlie opens the door just as Bill gets to it. The two look at each other before finally, Bill sighs and steps aside.

**INT. Bill’s Candy Shop, night.**

In the background, from a music player behind the counter, _Sugar Sugar_ by The Archies plays.

Played by Alvin Sanders (known as Riverdale’s Pop Tate and, more importantly, as King Sombra from the horse show), Bill is wearing a uniform that is uniformly cheery, all clean white shirt and bright red bow tie.

The shop itself is oddly perfect, the product of years of hard work and renovation. Dark wooden shelves are built into the walls, glass hatches keeping candies of all colors contained. There’s a fake tree, and the branches have hundreds of small holes where lollipops sit instead of leaves. Behind the counter, there are vintage carnival posters, and right in front of the counters, there are Wonka Bars. They’re almost sold out.

BILL

”Charlie! That’s not a face you see every day - at least, not inside the store.”

CHARLIE

”Looking is free. Tasting will cost me.”

BILL

”A small price to pay for joy.”

CHARLIE

”A large price to pay in the context of my life.”

A beat.

CHARLIE

”My grandfather just wants a Wonka Bar, and then I’ll get out of your hair.”

Bill is bald.

CHARLIE

(Would rather get this transaction over and done with)

”Well, you get the idea.”

Bill hands Charlie a bar of Whipple-Scrumptious Fudgemallow Delight. Charlie presses the coins into Bill’s hand.

BILL

”Ticket hunting?”

CHARLIE

”What’s the point if you don’t give it a try?”

BILL

”True that. There’s just the one ticket left, now. Some lucky kid in Paraguay found the fourth. Alberto Minoletta.”

CHARLIE

”Let’s hope I get some of his luck, huh?”

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room, night.**

Charlie gently wakes up Joe, whose eyes light up when he sees the Wonka Bar.

JOE

(Quietly excited)

”Which end should we open first?”

CHARLIE

(Softly)

”Just do it quick, like a band-aid.”

Charlie holds the bar while Joe opens it. They both look away, camera avoiding the bar until the ripping of paper stops.

The chocolate bar doesn’t have a golden ticket.

Charlie flushes madly red. He’s upset, maybe even on the brink of tears, but tries to keep it down.

JOE

”Charlie...”

He fails to keep it down.

CHARLIE

”We could’ve bought bullion cubes. We’ve been thinning the soup for months and it would’ve been a change, it would’ve been-”

JOE

”You don’t have to be the adult, my boy.”

CHARLIE

(Loudly)

”Yes, I do!”

He realizes the other elders are asleep and lower his voice accordingly.

CHARLIE

”These tickets are only hurting me by getting my hopes up! I can’t believe I let you do this! I can’t believe I believed you, that some small part of me thought we might luck out!”

Joe goes to say something and Charlie shushes him.

CHARLIE

”No. Good night, grandpa Joe.”

**EXT. The Teavee apartment building, America, daytime.**

Establishing shot. A news van similar to the one that left the Beauregard house is parked outside a tall beige apartment building. The camera crew stands aside as a reporter pushes a button to be let inside.

**INT. The apartment building, outside the Teavee apartment.**

The reporter goes to knock on the door, but the door is immediately opened by NORMAN TEAVEE. Balding, wearing thick glasses and a sweater vest, he looks like he was bullied in high school. He was. Behind him, DORIS TEAVEE is having a glass of wine. Somewhere in the background, there’s noise.

DIRECTOR

”Hi, we’re with the news.”

NORMAN

”Yes, yes, please come in. I’m afraid my son is... tied up at the moment, but I can get him soon.”

The camera team enters. As they do, the director speaks.

DIRECTOR

”Oh, that’s fine, that’s fine. Actually, would you mind if we got some every day candids? Show off your daily lives, really play up the everyman angle for the fans?"

NORMAN

(Powerless)

”Fans? Ehm...”

DIRECTOR

”The world wants a story, and the other kids already have them. It’s not every day good old Colorado gets an international face. Mind if we get some shots of the table?”

The camera man tilts the camera towards Doris, who gives him an apathetic glare and downs the rest of her glass. Norman laughs nervously. The director joins him.

DIRECTOR

”Actually, let’s get some candids of your son. What is he doing?”

NORMAN

”He’s, ehm, gaming. I don’t know- I mean, I guess it’ll be fine if you promise to be quiet, so you don’t disturb his gaming flow. He gets real upset when you disturb his gaming flow.”

The director exchanges looks and nods with their team. They’ll be quiet.

Moving shot from the camera’s point of view, recording symbol blinking in the corner of the screen. The camera follows Norman as he makes his way down a short corridor to the door at the end. As the camera moves, the noise in the background gets louder. It sounds like something out of a war movie. Norman carefully opens the door, and we see MIKE TEAVEE. Gangly, dark hair cropped short, a perfect gamer teen. He is leaned forward in a gamer chair, some sort of war-based shooting game playing on screen. We get just enough time to take in the scene before he shouts.

MIKE

(Screaming like gamers are known to do)

”DIE, YOU *bleep* *bleep*!! SUCK MY-”

Cut immediately to

**INT. The Teavee apartment** , but this time, on tv.

The banner in the bottom corner of the screen reads ”LOCAL COLORADO KID GETS FINAL TICKET”. Local Colorado Kid Mike is sitting in a chair with his feet up on the kitchen table. He is wearing camouflage patterned socks. The feet half obscure the face of Norman, who is sitting next to him.

MIKE

(Nonchalant)

”All you had to do was track the manufacturing dates, offset by weather and the derivative of the Nikkei index. A homo could figure it out.”

Norman peeks over the feet.

NORMAN

”He’s a smart kid. Great kid. Half the time, I don’t know what he’s talking about, but, ehm, that’s a granted with all this new technology.”

MIKE

”Yeah, that paraguayan ticket? It’s a forgery. None of the tickets went to Paraguay.”

Mike glares at his dad. Norman shrinks back, now even more obscured by the feet.

NORMAN

(Half-whisper)

”They grow up so quickly nowadays.”

REPORTER 4

”Then where’s the last ticket?”

MIKE

”Isn’t it obvious?”

Nobody says anything to that. Mike rolls his eyes.

MIKE

”Idiots. Idiots, all of you. I'm not telling, but basically, I could triangulate the positions of the remaining tickets, and only had to buy one candy bar. Could’ve bought two, but I’m not desperate. Could’ve bought out the store, but it’s literally not any harder than feeling for the ticket.”

REPORTER 4

”And how did it taste?”

MIKE

”I don’t know. Chocolate’s gay, and only-”

Before Mike can spew out ten slurs, the tv goes dark and zooms out. We are once again back in:

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room.**

GEORGE

”Wonka Junior’s gonna have hell of a time guiding these guests around. Not one is a decent kid. Not one!”

CHARLIE

”Well, we don’t know what that Alberto from Paraguay is like.”

GEORGE

(Not listening)

”Bad apples, every single one.”

**EXT. A typical Treaticetown street, early morning.**

Song playing over this scene: _The Only Thing_ by Sufjan Stevens.

As Charlie runs his morning newspaper route, we see similar imagery to the previous scene, but more lackluster. This time, the bike doesn’t stay in a straight line, drifting back and forth. Although the bike is slower than previously, the newspapers don’t land perfectly, often ending up in bushes next to the doors or hitting a stair step, knocking them onto the crosswalk. Charlie doesn’t seem to care.

When he rounds the corner this time, he doesn’t stop to look at the factory in all its glory. Now, it flaunts a banner counting down the days until the factory opens for the select guests: three.

Instead, bike wheels continue rolling.

When Charlie passes the candy store, he sees something in the snow. The bike rolls past, and Charlie jumps off of it, leaving it lying on the street.

There’s money in the snow.

Charlie picks it up. Counts it. Looks at the candy store. Bill has just flipped the sign to open, and some adults have already entered the store. A newspaper clipping on the door reads ”PARAGUAY TICKET A FORGERY! WHO WILL THE LAST GUEST BE?” Underneath it, stickers proudly say ”Wonka Bars sold here!”

_The Only Thing_ by Sufjan Stevens ends, closing out on the line ”Everything I feel returns to you somehow”.

**INT. Bill’s Candy Shop.**

Charlie steps into the warm of the shop. Bill greets him with a nod. Charlie returns it and picks a Wonka Bar at random. He places the money on the counter.

Once Bill collects it and steps aside to serve another customer, Charlie starts opening the chocolate bar.

CUSTOMER 1 (IN THE BACKGROUND)

”Surprising about the paraguayan ticket, huh?”

He cracks open the paper.

BILL (IN THE BACKGROUND)

”It’s a few more days of excitement for the kids and a few more days of business for me, so no complaints.”

He pulls out the chocolate bar, fingers hesitating at the first touch.

CUSTOMER 1

”My children have been following this whole thing on the internet. Apparently there’s a whole fanbase for this thing.”

He turns the chocolate bar. Gold light reflects off of the fifth golden ticket.

CHARLIE

(Uncontrollably)

”Oh my god!”

Bill, now on screen, looks at him, as do the customers. They all notice at the same time, and something in their eyes shifts.

BILL

”You found the last golden ticket! In my shop, too!”

The customers move in towards Charlie, almost hungrily.

CUSTOMER 1

”I’ll pay a thousand dollars for that ticket.”

CUSTOMER 2

”I’ll give you my house. I’ll pay off my mortgage and I’ll give you my house.”

Charlie grasps the chocolate bar, torn. A thousand dollars has always been an otherworldly sum of money to him. Taking the offer would be enough to fix his whole living situation. It’s a tempting offer.

BILL

”Leave him alone!”

(To Charlie)

”Take the ticket and go straight home.”

Charlie blinks as if returning to the real world from a world where all his problems are solved, swallows, and runs.

**EXT. Bill’s Candy Shop.**

Song playing in the background: _It’s Time_ by Imagine Dragons.

Charlie sprints out the store, candy bar solidly in hand. He grabs his bike from the street and jumps on it, shoving the candy bar in his jacket and pressing it to his body with his upper arm, steering with the other.

He speed bikes down the town streets, so fast the camera might not be able to keep up. The bike gets to a downhill part, and as he bikes down it, Charlie raises his other hand to the sky, letting the bike steer itself as he lets his feelings out.

CHARLIE

(Yelling)

”I found a god damn golden ticket!!!”

**EXT. The Bucket residence.**

_It’s Time_ fades out as the bike pulls into the yard of the Bucket residence. Charlie, for the second time within three minutes of screen time, gets off the bike as fast as possible and leaves it to lie on the ground. He checks the interior of his jacket - the chocolate bar is still there.

We see the house again. Misshapen, falling apart, windows either covered in vines or broken. There aren’t lights in the windows. They can’t afford them most of the time.

Charlie’s smile fades.

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room.**

The elders are in their bed, as per usual. Geraldine is sitting on a chair next to them, reading a Roald Dahl book. Jack is leaning on Geraldine, his head on her shoulder, as he stirs a cup of coffee that most definitely is just cold water with coffee powder in it.

Charlie comes in, walking like he has bad news to share but smiling like he has good news.

CHARLIE

”I found it.”

Jack raises an eyebrow. Geraldine closes the book. If Joe’s eyes were this bright all the time, the Buckets wouldn’t ever need to pay for electricity.

JOE

”You mean?"

Charlie holds the chocolate bar and pulls the ticket out. He’s shivering. Is it from cold or from nerves? We can’t tell.

CHARLIE

”I found the fifth golden ticket.”

The room bursts into noise and movement as the elders cheer and shout encouragements, Jack makes various noises of shock, and Geraldine hugs her son so tight he thinks he might pop. She’s shorter than him by a lot and he has to kind of lift her up to get the proper hug experience.

He interrupts the celebratory ruckus.

CHARLIE

”We can’t keep it.”

The room falls silent. Joe’s face falls like source material-Veruca down the trash chute.

CHARLIE

”Someone offered me a thousand dollars for it. Someone else offered me a house, like a proper house, and there are people who could offer more than that. We need that money so much more than we need the chocolate.”

His parents exchange looks but don’t say anything. Nobody does. Charlie looks at the room, looks at the ticket. He expects some sort of counterargument.

He gets it.

GEORGE

”Oh, shut up about money!”

Charlie blinks. He says nothing.

GEORGE

”There’s plenty of money out there. They print more every day. These tickets, meanwhile, are five of a kind. This is a once in a lifetime-chance to visit a factory you’ve idolized since you were a kid, and you’re going to pass it up? For convenience? What kind of idiocy is that?”

Charlie doesn’t have an answer. Actually, he does, but he's being told to indulge in selfishness for the first time in very many years, and it can't hurt to cave in just once if grandpa George says so.

GEORGE

”Besides, if it gets Joe out of the house and quiet about his factory days, that’s all the convenience we’ll ever need.”

Georgina nods in agreement. Josephine looks confused but happy as George squeezes her hand.

CHARLIE

(Smiling)

”Alright. I’ll go.”

Joe, to everyone’s surprise, rises from the bed. He’s an unstable walker. Charlie holds an arm out to support him as he walks forward and takes the golden ticket. Joe holds it as if it were real gold, and looks up, smiling from ear to ear.

JOE

”We’re going to Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, my boy. We’re going back.”

Angle on Charlie’s face, about to cry.

Angle on Joe’s face, reliable and hopeful.

**EXT. The Bucket residence, day.**

A news van parks on the road outside the house. A news crew gets out, lugging cameras and boom mics. The crew is headed by the same director we saw at the Teavee apartment. They look at the house.

The house still looks like it’s living out its last days, but now a strategic blanket has been placed over the broken window. Outside the house, Charlie, Joe, Geraldine, and Jack are lined up, all wearing their nicest clothes. Given their circumstances, their nicest clothes are on par with what the camera crew is wearing. Not very fancy.

The director frowns.

DIRECTOR

”No.”

**EXT. A random townhouse in Treaticetown.**

The director is instructing Charlie as another crew member puts makeup on him. He is wearing different clothes now, a striped sweatshirt over a white button-up.

DIRECTOR

”Remember, the world wants a story. They want someone relatable. The thought was for Mike to be that someone, but then he came out as some kind of next generation-Alan Turing and a need opened up. People don’t want a poor kid. They want an everyman. That’s you now.”

Charlie nods along. The makeup artist grabs ahold of his chin to make sure he doesn’t move.

DIRECTOR

”The grandpa angle is good, it gives us a reason to root for you, but leave out any financial troubles the shutdown may have caused your family. Just leave it all out.”

CHARLIE

”It caused us a lot of financial problems.”

The makeup artist gently slaps Charlie on the cheek and grips his chin a little harder.

DIRECTOR

”Now, I’m thinking we sit you on these stairs...”

**EXT. A random townhouse in Treaticetown,** but this time, on tv.

The banner at the bottom of the screen reads ”REAL FIFTH TICKET FOUND! LIFE BY THE WONKA FACTORY UNRAVELED!” Charlie is sitting on the stairs leading up to the door. Next to him, Joe sits, wearing a nice new coat and a warm knit hat.

CHARLIE

”My grandpa Joe actually used to work at the factory, back in the day!”

REPORTER 5 (OFF SCREEN)

”And what did you do?”

JOE

”I operated the machines- well, the first ones, before they were properly automated. My station was in charge of mixing the chocolate and filling the molds. If you ate a Wonka Bar thirty years ago, there’s a good chance I mixed the chocolate.”

REPORTER 5 (OFF SCREEN)

”What are the two of you most looking forward to in the factory?”

JOE

”Seeing what’s changed! The young Wonka seems to be capable, and I’m curious about his way of doing things.”

Charlie thinks.

REPORTER 5 (OFF SCREEN)

”And you, Charlie?”

CHARLIE

”Everything.”

**EXT. A typical Treaticetown street, early morning.**

As Charlie once again rounds the corner on an early morning, we see a wide shot of the factory.

The banner has been removed and replaced with large, candy-colored balloons. They all have different candy themed, caramel or taffy or chocolate or sugar or peppermint, each one welcoming a different visitor. Although the sun has just started rising, there’s a crowd outside, including a couple tents. Several camera crews are setting up proper camera setups. Bleachers have been set up directly in front of the gates. There’s even a large speaker system, blasting Wonka’s new version of _The Candy Man_ loud enough to hear from this distance.

Charlie takes a deep, nervous breath and continues with his route, turning onto a side street, when a man steps in front of the bike. Charlie hits the break at the last second.

The man is wearing a trenchcoat, black top hat, round sunglasses, and khakis. He is simultaneously suspicious and inconspicuous. He is Japanese.

MAN

”Charlie Bucket?”

Charlie remains on the bike, one leg to the ground.

CHARLIE

”Yes?”

The man holds out a hand. He flashes a badge with the other.

MAN

”Walker Wilkinson, FBI; I have a request to make of you, at your convenience.”

Charlie shakes the hand, slightly confused. He goes for multiple shakes, but Wilkinson only does the one. This is serious business.

CHARLIE

”Well, what is it?”

Wilkinson adjusts his sunglasses.

WILKINSON

”You’ll be heading into Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory in a few hours, a place nobody has visited in decades - at least, nobody who’s returned.”

This is an alarming statement. Charlie adjusts his foot for proper grip.

WILKINSON

”I merely request that you keep a lookout for any information on Wonka that may seem out of the ordinary.”

CHARLIE

(This agent man came out of nowhere and he has no idea how to react)

”What are you looking for?”

WILKINSON

”Records, recipes, tidbits. Let me make something clear, Bucket. We have nothing on this Wonka the second. At this point, scraps will do, and you’re about to get the full meal.”

Charlie just nods.

WILKINSON

”In the event that Wonka’s closet is clean of skeletons, we’d also appreciate information on the Salt family. Just in case.”

Charlie just nods, but like, faster.

WILKINSON

”We’ll pay, of course. Generously. Make it worth your while. Get your family settled for a good long while.”

CHARLIE

”Okay. Okay. Cool.”

Wilkinson nods once. He pulls a small box out of his trenchcoat, opens the lid, and pulls a single white business card out of a neat stack. He hands it to Charlie with two fingers. Charlie takes it with five.

WILKINSON

”This is our number. You call it when you have information. Got it?”

CHARLIE

”Got it. Thanks.”

WILKINSON

”Tell nobody.”

CHARLIE

”Yeah. Absolutely. Wasn’t planning to.”

Wilkinson continues walking. Charlie reads the business card: it just says WILKINSON, followed by a phone number. When he looks behind him, Wilkinson is gone. There aren’t even footsteps in the snow.

**EXT. In front of the gates of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory** , on tv.

The banner at the bottom of the screen reads ”WONKA OPENS GATES FOR FIRST TIME IN DECADES”. We see shots of the crowd outside the factory. A group of teen girls gleefully shout ”THE CANDY MAN CAN” and pose for the camera. Someone in the very back has a banner that reads ”Veruca could step on me and I would thank her”. Someone else has a sign reading ”Mike gang” and it appears they’re getting into a fight with a group wearing ”Violet is a winner”-shirts.

REPORTER 5 (VOICEOVER)

”We’re here live at the opening of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, where today, the wonkamania will finally come to an end.”

Cut to the reporter, standing in front of a bleacher where most of the ticket guests are sitting - save for Veruca Salt and father, who aren’t present.

The reporter goes to ask Augustus a question.

REPORTER 5

”What was it like, flying in from Germany?”

Quick cut to:

**EXT. Gloops Wurstfabrik, yesterday, not on tv.**

Augustus takes a bite out of a donut as he stands waiting in the middle of the crosswalk.

In front of him, Frau Gloop gives Herr Gloop multiple sloppy kisses on the cheek, all the while giving him instructions in German to the likes of ”there are meals prepared in the fridge” and ”Don’t forget to empty the dish washer! Should I empty the dishwasher now?” Herr Gloop gives manly grunts in response. He’s just standing there and taking the affection.

Cut to Augustus dragging his mother into a taxi and, in German, telling the driver to go to the airport. His mother waves at the Herr through the car window.

**EXT. The bleachers by the gates of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory** , on tv again.

AUGUSTUS

(German accent all the more apparent)

”Fine. It was fine.”

REPORTER 5

(To Violet)

”Still chewing gum?”

SCARLETT

”She never stopped. My girl is such a go-getter, wouldn’t you say?”

Violet just smiles and chews slightly faster.

The camera moves to Mike, who has his computer open. He’s tapping away like his wifi only lasts for a couple more minutes.

REPORTER 5

”Did you know the last ticket was here?”

Mike types something in and hits enter. A robot voice says: ”It was right outside the factory. A.k.a the town where Wonka first hit success. Simple nostalgia tactics. Maybe if you sucked my *bleep* it would give you basic common sense”.

The camera immediately moves on to Charlie, who smiles awkwardly.

REPORTER 5

”Have- oh, is that Veruca Salt?”

The camera immediately pans away from the Buckets, over the crowd, beyond which we see a limousine.

**INT. The limousine.**

Veruca is on her phone, leaned up against the right hand side-window. Outside, Treaticetown streets pass, but she’s not looking.

RUPERT (OFF SCREEN)

”Yes, we will. Yes, she does. No, we’re not.”

Opposite her, sitting on the left, Rupert is taking a phone call he’d rather not be taking right at this moment.

RUPERT

”Yes. Of course. Thank you too, Mister Slugworth.”

He hangs up and looks at Veruca.

RUPERT

”Are you excited, angel?”

Veruca doesn’t look up. She shrugs.

VERUCA

”It’s whatever. Hopefully I’ll get some good photo-ops. Can’t be letting my followers down.”

RUPERT

(A little bit stressed)

”And you know what we have to do, sweetheart?”

He gives her a meaning look. Veruca finally looks up from her phone.

VERUCA

”I have no qualms. He doesn’t even have a brand twitter.

(Musing)

Anyway, I’ll play the fool. That is, after all, the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little porcelain fool.”

Rupert pauses.

RUPERT

”That’s my girl.”

The limo stops. A beat, and the door opens. Veruca gives her dad a smile with just her mouth and then blinks, breathes, and steps out of the car.

**EXT. In front of the gates of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory**.

Veruca steps out and smiles like an angel. She twirls and blows kisses and waves as the crowd makes a path for her to the bleachers.

Rupert follows, not as welcome and not as confident.

**EXT. The bleachers by the gates of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate factory.**

Veruca waltzes up and sits in her spot, exactly in the middle of the bleachers.

Wide shot of the bleachers. We see all guests - Frau Gloop and Augustus, the Frau absentmindedly fixing his hair - Violet and Scarlett, Scarlett nudging Violet to fix her posture and Violet following suit, all the while chewing gum - Veruca, taking a selfie with the crowd while Rupert looks like a perfect businessman - Mike on his computer, Norman trying to peek at what he’s doing but getting told off for it - and Charlie, at the very edge, looking intimidated while his grandfather is absolutely dazzled.

**INT. A tower in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

From a balcony, we see the crowd at the gates. It’s bigger than we originally might have thought. If we listen carefully, we can hear _The Candy Man_ playing.

Someone steps into camera view. Camera pans up from his chest. He’s wearing a pinstripe suit, which is odd, but as we get to his face we recognize him as Willy Wonka Junior.

WILLY WONKA

”Are the preparations ready?”

VOICE (OFF SCREEN)

”Everything’s set up.”

WILLY WONKA

”Fantastic.”

Willy takes off his suit jacket. Underneath, he is wearing a lavender button-up. He picks up a candy red suit jacket instead.

WILLY WONKA

”Tell me dear, who can take tomorrow, dip it in a dream, separate the sorrow and collect up all the cream?”

VOICE (OFF SCREEN)

”Willy Wonka can.”

WILLY WONKA

”Willy Wonka can!”

Willy puts on the red suit jacket. He ties a shamrock bow tie around his neck.

We see Willy from the shoulders up. In the background, somebody is standing in shadow, positioned in such a way that they could be standing on his shoulder.

Willy smiles. He has a charming smile.

WILLY WONKA

”Let’s play, shall we?”


	2. S1E2 - Pure Imagination

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the tour begins and Charlie makes friends with his opposite.
> 
> Previously on Candyman:  
> Augustus Gloop, Veruca Salt, Violet Beauregarde, Mike Teavee, and Charlie Bucket all found golden tickets inviting them to tour Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. Veruca's father seems to have made some sort of deal with a man named Slugworth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for:  
> Homophobic language, withholding of food and related manipulation (Scarlett is a bad mother), fatphobia, the fizzy lifting room ceiling fan, worrying about money, and disappearing without warning.

**EXT. Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

Song playing in the background: _The Candy Man_ , a modernized yet slightly jazzy cover created specifically for this show.

We open on the double door leading into the factory. Tall, oddly slim, painted faded purple with tall windows that are too foggy to give away secrets.

The camera quickly zooms out, and we now see the door from between the thin iron bars of the gates, the ones locking off the factory from the public. Snow lies in droves across a small quad, gathered in pyramids around large balloon weights.

Five teens and their guardians sit in a line on a bleacher in front of the gates.

The music adjusts. We can now hear that the song is playing from a speaker in the background.

Scarlett Beauregarde adjusts daughter Violet Beauregarde’s hair. Violet, chewing gum, smiles thinly at her mom, who’s still occupied with getting her daughter’s pony tail just right.

Augustus Gloop taps his feet rhythmically on the steps. His mother, Frau Gloop, pats his cheek affectionately.

FRAU

”Es wird sich jeden Moment öffnen, Liebling.”

AUGUSTUS

”Ja, ich weiß, ich weiß.”

He does keep tapping, though.

Mike Teavee, typing furiously on his computer to the point where you can hear it from far away, hits the enter button in triumph and closes his computer immediately. When father Norman Teavee tries to look in his direction, Mike closes a fist and starts making a fake-punch movement. Norman immediately looks in the other direction, right at:

Rupert Salt, a victim of Veruca Salt’s camera. Veruca, wearing a silky pink dress and a white mink coat, snaps one final selfie with the crowd behind her and blows one final kiss as a thank you. She goes on to look at her phone, scrolling through the pictures. For a brief moment, she looks to the side, right over the Teavees and at Charlie Bucket.

Charlie notices and looks caught off guard.

Veruca smirks and goes back to looking at her phone.

Charlie, despite having gotten new clothes for his interview, is cold. He pulls his jacket closer. His grandfather, Joe Bucket, makes a move to take off his scarf and give it to him, but Charlie shakes his head. He won’t let his grandfather freeze when this jacket will do just fine.

Five teens sit in a line with their guardians. The stage has been set.

Rupert rises and moves for the gates.

RUPERT

(Loudly, aimed at the factory)

”All right. Time has passed. We did not come all the way out here to be subjected to freezing cold. Either you let us in, or-”

WILLY WONKA (SOURCE UNKNOWN)

(Loudly)

”ESTEEMED GUESTS! WELCOME, CHARMED, PLEASURE BEYOND PLEASURE TO MEET YOU! DELIGHTED!”

Violet stops chewing her gum.

People are looking around for the source of the sound.

WILLY WONKA (SOURCE UNKNOWN)

(Loudly)

”HOW NICE! HOW SPLENDID! COME IN, COME IN! THAT’S RIGHT! STEP RIGHT ON THROUGH THE GATES, AND I, WILLY WONKA, SHALL GREET YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE!”

The sound is coming from the giant candy balloons. As people discover this, they also stop caring.

The iron gates open automatically.

The guests rise from the stands and make their way through in pairs. Meanwhile, Willy keeps shouting enthusiastic greetings like ”THIS IS GOING TO BE SO EXCITING!” and ”YOU ALL LOOK LOVELY! MARVELOUS!” over balloon loudspeaker.

Once in the courtyard, the gates close behind the guests. The guests stand around in the courtyard, still in pairs, not quite lined up.

WILLY WONKA

”YES, G-”

There’s an interrupting sound over the loudspeakers.

Charlie immediately puts his hands over Joe’s ears, flinching but self-sacrificing.

Mike rolls his eyes.

VOICE

(This is just Willy Wonka, but in a different tone. The clash between high-enthusiasm and smooth attendant throws people off the trail)

”Esteemed guests, we appear to have some difficulties. Please follow the escort inside. Thank you for your consideration.”

The factory double doors open, and a figure in a black cloak slips out, holding up the door and gesturing inside.

Rupert exchanges a look with Veruca, and the two walk forward. The others follow.

 **EXT. Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory** , but this time, on tv.

The banner once again reads ”WONKA OPENS GATES FOR FIRST TIME IN DECADES”. The camera zooms in on the last guests stepping through the door. The figure in the black cloak spins inside, cloth flowing through the air, and slams the door behind them.

Cut to Reporter 5, standing by the bleachers.

REPORTER 5

”Well, that’s that. Return tomorrow for exclusive interviews with the ticket finders. Now, over to you, Mel.”

**INT. The Everlasting Entrance Hallway.**

The guests find themselves in a grey hallway. It stretches forward long enough for the end not to be visible.

The cloaked figure shuts the door behind the guests, who’ve already started opening or taking off their jackets in the indoor warmth.

Scarlett zips down her jacket just enough to show off her cleavage. She speaks while doing it, making the motion look automatic.

SCARLETT

”Where’s mister Wonka?”

The cloaked figure swipes out an arm and the cloak falls off of them, revealing none other than mister Wonka himself, red suit and all.

WILLY WONKA

”Here’s mister Wonka, Scarlett!”

Scarlett’s face drops.

WILLY WONKA

”Wonderful to meet you all. Just wonderful.”

SCARLETT

(Caught off guard in a way the others aren’t)

”Yes, you too.”

Joe makes his way towards Wonka, leaning on Charlie.

JOE

”Mister Wonka! I used to work at this factory, thirty years ago. It’s an honor.”

He holds out a hand to shake. Willy pauses for a second, and then shakes it enthusiastically.

WILLY WONKA

”Yes, welcome back, Joe!”

Joe smiles. Charlie tilts his head.

CHARLIE

”How’d you know his name?”

WILLY WONKA

”I know all of your names, of course! Why, what kind of host would I be, inviting a bunch of total strangers into my factory?”

MIKE

”You did invite a bunch of total strangers into your factory. You chose your guests via rng.”

WILLY WONKA

”Ah yes, thank you, Mike Teavee. You’re the one who cracked the system! Not very ”rng” on your part, was it?”

MIKE

”There was barely a system to crack.”

NORMAN

(Under his breath)

”Be polite, Mike.”

(Normal voice)

”It’s an honor to be here, mister Wonka.”

WILLY WONKA

”And who are you again?”

NORMAN

”Norman Teavee. I’m Mike’s father.”

WILLY WONKA

”Sure!”

Norman looks like he wants to protest something, but Mike stops him with a single death glare.

WILLY WONKA

”Now, if you’ll just come with me... this way, please. Introduce yourselves! Make fast friends!”

Willy starts walking down the corridor. The group hesitates, and then follows. It quickly spreads out, adults walking in the back and teens walker further ahead.

Mike smoothly sidles up to Charlie.

MIKE

”So. Charlie. This is gonna get competitive, and as everyone in the competitive gaming sphere knows, teaming is only unfair for the people who don’t do it.”

CHARLIE

”Okay?”

MIKE

”What I’m saying is, I need a bro. A main man. A player number two.”

Augustus not-so-covertly sidles up to them. Mike narrows his eyes.

MIKE

”Not you, pansy. Keep walking."

(To Charlie)

"So, how are we gonna play this?”

Augustus looks sad. Veruca, who’s walking in front of them, turns around and walks backwards.

CHARLIE

”Well, ehm-”

VERUCA

”God, how pathetic can you get? He’s not interested, Michael.”

Mike backs off Charlie, now on the aggressive but towards Veruca.

MIKE

”Mike, and I’m not coming onto him, princess-”

VERUCA

(Fake glee)

”I AM a princess, thank you!

(Now looking at her phone while walking backwards)

And sure. Keep doing that.”

MIKE

”That’s what you’ll be saying when I’ve got your skirt pulled up.”

VERUCA

(Louder)

”Dad?”

Rupert, walking further back with the parents, puts on his tough business face.

RUPERT

”I’ve got our lawyer on speed dial.”

Norman, who is walking next to him, is watching this whole exchange, terrified.

NORMAN

”Ehm, that’s enough of that, Mike.”

Mike hates that his father doesn’t have a backbone in his whole body, but also understands that he’s being threatened by someone much wealthier. He falls back to walk with not-so-dear old dad. Norman tries to pat his shoulder, and Mike shakes it off immediately. The gamer teen makes a face kind of like a threatened cat.

Scarlett, walking next to her daughter, has been watching this entire thing go down. She eyes Rupert intently, and then looks at Veruca.

VERUCA

(With a smile that Satan would be proud of, to the backed up Mike)

”You’re not laying a finger on me, Television.”

Veruca spins back around, walking normally.

Scarlett nudges Violet, who kind of pops back to reality from inside her own thoughts. She nods forward. Violet takes the information in, chews her gum determinately, and starts walking faster, passing Charlie and getting to the front.

Veruca briefly looks up from her phone and notes Violet. She slides her free arm around Violet’s and pulls her near, the two essentially walking hip to hip now.

VERUCA

”You know, you would be a showstopper with just a little bit of mascara.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Thanks?”

VERUCA

”Veruca Salt.”

She says it like businessmen tend to say their names, a tone of voice usually accompanied by a hand shake, but there is no handshake to be had, because Veruca’s other hand is holding a phone.

Violet glances at her mom, a little bit scared, and her mom nods and mouths ”mingle”. Violet pulls her mouth into a line and nods slightly, then returns to Veruca with a soft smile.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Violet Beauregarde.”

VERUCA

(Sweet, maybe sickly so)

”By gum, you’ve got quite the reputation going. Is that the same piece you were chewing in your interview?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”It is.”

VERUCA

(Slightly disgusted)

”Charming.

(Back in sweet mode)

I have a feeling we’re going to be good friends, you and I.”

Violet tries to match her expression.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Yes.”

VERUCA

”Relax. I’m not gonna hurt you. I’m not dangerous.”

She makes a dangerous face in an instant and returns to normal just as fast. Violet’s face does not know how to react.

VERUCA

”Here. Smile for the camera.”

They take a selfie. Veruca outshines Violet by a long shot, but if she notices, she doesn’t comment on it. Neither does Violet, but for different reasons.

Veruca goes to post the selfie, but is met with an error.

VERUCA

(Irritated)

”Hey, William Wonka. Your factory doesn’t have reception.”

Willy Wonka turns around by spinning on his heel.

WILLY WONKA

”That’s intentional, Verunica Salt. Wouldn’t want some sort of double agent getting into the factory and sending my secrets directly to the competition, would we?”

Veruca keeps her irritation poker face. Rupert briefly furrows his eyebrows.

VERUCA

”No, but apparently we wouldn’t want good publicity, either.”

WILLY WONKA

”I find I have everything I need, my dear, including publicity. Can you say the same?”

Rupert steps in.

RUPERT

”Mister Wonka, you must let me put you in contact with a brand manager.”

Willy is not listening. He half-jumps onto a raised part of the floor and then crouches down slightly in order to appearat the same level as the rest of the group, still walking down the hallway.

WILLY WONKA

”Anyway, we have our own system here at the factory. I’m sure you’ll become... intimately familiar with it during the tour.”

Mike is, well, Mike.

MIKE

”A whole separate system?”

WILLY WONKA

”That’s almost what I said!”

MIKE

”That’s- you’d need-”

As Mike leads into what is surely going to be a long, somehow homophobic lecture about establishing a separate location locked system, Willy shrugs and walks through the wall. The tour stops dead in it’s tracks. Mike shuts up.

Willy sticks his head out of the wall.

WILLY WONKA

”Oh, we’re going this way. Keep up, we do have all day.”

The group blinks and looks around, waiting for a volunteer to step through the wall first. A beat. Charlie walks forward.

Veruca raises an eyebrow.

Charlie approaches the wall carefully, putting a hand forward. When it goes through, he runs his whole arm through the wall. He then steps through completely.

**INT. The actual entrance hallway.**

Charlie stumbles through the wall and into a room that looks much more like something you’d see in a fantastical chocolate factory. The walls are softly buttercream colored. There’s a bright red carpet leading up to an ornate door, and railings on either side of the carpet. At a second glance, the railing poles are shaped like lollipops.

Charlie steps forward and looks around, visibly relaxing. This room feels comforting to him. It holds all the wonder of Bills’ Candy Shop, but without the associated economic exclusion.

Augustus steps through the wall and stumbles into him. Charlie startles.

AUGUSTUS

”Sorry.”

CHARLIE

”No, no, it’s fine - Charlie, Bucket.”

He holds out a hand. Augustus gives him a fist bump.

AUGUSTUS

”Didn’t your grandpa work here once?”

CHARLIE

(Not used to casually be talking to people his age, but happy about doing so now)

”Yeah! Yeah. Yeah.”

AUGUSTUS

”Epic. That’s a real dream job.”

CHARLIE

”Yeah, it is. I used to make him tell me stories about this place every night.”

AUGUSTUS

”I bet he has a lot of good ones.”

CHARLIE

”He really does, yeah. You could ask him when he comes through?”

Willy watches this exchange with what can only be described as fascination. As the two boys talk, the rest of the group comes through the wall, one by one.

Frau Gloop sees the boys talking and gives Augustus a brief but powerful hug.

FRAU

”Aw, mein Liebling macht Freunde! Ich bin so stolz!”

She gives him a kiss on the cheek and then lets go. Augustus looks like he’s in pain - that is, the pain of having a parent who loves him so publicly.

AUGUSTUS

”Mama! Du blamierst mich!”

The Frau mouths ”ich liebe dich” and smiles at him. When she smiles, her mouth somehow gets smaller. Augustus looks like he’d like to leave his earthly body and fly far away. Charlie is just genuinely enjoying watching this interaction.

CHARLIE

”Don’t worry, my mom gets like that too sometimes.”

Augustus appreciates the assurance but is still embarrassed.

Joe joins them and leans on Charlie’s shoulder.

JOE

”Interesting crowd, huh?”

CHARLIE

”Yeah. This is Augustus.”

Joe and Augustus greet each other. They probably exchange a few words, but they are no longer the focus of the scene.

We get a long shot of the hallway. Willy stands on his tip-toes and claps his hands.

WILLY WONKA

”Now, I will have everyone’s attention!”

He has everyone’s attention.

WILLY WONKA

”Beyond this door, the real factory begins. I have some ground rules. First of all, taste anything you want, but don’t contaminate it! Treats are good for a treat, but resources are not and will require quite the sanitation! Too much sanitation to keep me sane! You got that, Augustus?”

AUGUSTUS

(Why was he the one to be pointed out?)

”Yeah?”

WILLY WONKA

”Good! Second of all, you get what you have coming! This is a confusing factory to navigate, and I cannot be held responsible for what happens if you separate from the group!”

NORMAN

(This doesn’t sound safe)

”What happens if we separate from the group?”

WILLY WONKA

”I wouldn’t know, I’ll be with the group! You should be careful though, I might just forget about you! Anyway, third rule: have fun! There are no strings. Enjoy yourselves.”

Willy stands in front of the ornate door.

WILLY WONKA

”Now... tickets please!”

The tickets are handed in. Willy counts them and nods, satisfied. He fishes a huge ring of keys from a coat pocket and puts one into the ornate keyhole. There’s a click.

Joe and Charlie are leaned forward in suspense.

Willy pushes the door open. It swings open to reveal:

**INT. The Candy Forest.**

We see a huge room containing a forest made of candy. There are proper towering trees, some reaching the ceiling, with chocolate trunks and leaves made out of thinly spun sugar. Some trees grow caramels of various sorts, branches low with sweet fruit. The grass is unnaturally green and appears to be squishy. Over the room, there’s a big glass dome, through which the sky is visible. The sky appears sunnier than usual because the glass is tinted yellow. Through the room, a chocolate river runs, originating from a tall chocolate waterfall.

A familiar instrumental plays in the background: _Pure Imagination_.

Willy enters the room, half dancing. When _Pure Imagination_ gets to the bit with lyrics, he starts singing along. Not very passionately, and not as a central part of the scene, but he does know how to carry a tune. The voice over the speakers is not his.

The guests step in, the Gloops and the Buckets at the front of the group. Everyone’s taken aback by the room. All the guests move into the room, some running, except for the Beauregardes and Joe. Charlie and Augustus sprint off together for the farthest tree, daring each other to race.

AUGUSTUS

”Last one there’s a rotten egg!”

CHARLIE

(Already ahead of Augustus)

”Says the egg!”

Joe walks up to Willy, who’s still singing along. Willy notices him and stops singing along.

WILLY WONKA

”Want to change the world, there’s nothing- Oh, hi, Joe.”

JOE

”I just wanted to send my regards to your old man.”

WILLY WONKA

”My old man?”

JOE

”Willard Wonka the first. It’s been quite a while.”

WILLY WONKA

”Yes. My father has, unfortunately, passed away, but I’m sure he appreciates the sentiment.”

Joe blinks.

JOE

”Oh. I had no idea.”

WILLY WONKA

”Very few do. We were always a rather private family. Now, enjoy yourself! It’s not every day you get to take a walk in candy land!”

Willy walks off, humming along to _Pure Imagination_.

We see a closeup of Willy. For a brief second, his smile drops.

Meanwhile, we get some shots of the guests enjoying the room. Frau Gloop takes off her coat and rolls up her sleeves before picking an edible teacup from a low-growing plant. Mike dropkicks a candy pumpkin and the shell breaks, unleashing a mass of sweet goo. Rupert looks around to make sure nobody’s watching, and then grabs a handful of candied berries from a bush. Norman looks like that mind math meme as he examines a gigantic candy cane poking out of the ground. Charlie runs and collides with a candy tree, before turning around and going back to help the exhausted Augustus.

Meanwhile, Scarlett and Violet remain by the door, gazing down into the candy forest. They’re both steel-eyed, but there’s ambition in Scarlett’s.

SCARLETT

”Now, don’t eat anything. Candy gives you empty energy, and on your diet, you’ll sugar crash instantly. You want to stay functional and beautiful for when you receive your grand prize.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Yes, Scarlett.”

SCARLETT

”Good. Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life.”

She looks, disgusted, at Augustus piling candied grass and various small treats onto a chocolate bar in order to make a sort of sugar-based sandwich. Violet, obedient, looks with her. She’s nauseous.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”So I’ve heard.”

SCARLETT

”Chew your gum carefully. You want it to last.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Yes, Scarlett.”

Meanwhile, Augustus and Charlie have found a spot in the grass under a caramel tree. Augustus is stacking more things on his sugar sandwich while Charlie is picking and eating caramels from the tree above him. Augustus is talking and his eyes are shining with passion.

Veruca sits on a candy bench nearby, having a lollipop while on her phone.

AUGUSTUS

”So butterscotch is made with brown sugar instead of white, and that’s what makes it superior to the regular caramel. It balances out whatever you pair it with! The genius thing the Scrumdiddlyumptious Bar does is it uses toffee, which is just harder butterscotch, which means the other ingredients don’t overpower the flavor!”

CHARLIE

(Sucking a caramel)

”I hadn’t thought about that.”

AUGUSTUS

”I have! Gott, I’m so happy I can talk to someone about this.”

Augustus proceeds to chomp down on his sugar sandwich. Half of it spills onto the ground, but he doesn’t mind.

Mike walks past and snorts.

MIKE

”What are you, gay?”

He gives a shit-eating grin and raises his hand as if waiting for a high-five. Veruca looks up from her phone. She takes her lollipop out with two fingers, holding it between her index- and middle finger like a cigarette.

VERUCA

(Bitch mode)

”Have you ever had a friend, Michael Television? Ever?”

MIKE

(Caught off-guard)

”I-”

VERUCA

(Doing a bitch mode victory lap)

”Mhm. Exactly. Now maybe if you stopped with your toxic Tom Buchanan-attitude, people wouldn’t consider you scum of the earth. Capishe?”

She smiles like the devil. Mike flips her off with both hands and leaves to beat up another candy pumpkin, but Veruca’s already back on her phone, lollipop in mouth.

Charlie looks at her, grateful. She briefly looks up from her phone with just her eyes and gives him a trickster eye smile. Veruca’s gorgeous. We already know this, but this shot in particular really hammers it home.

Augustus notices their look exchange.

AUGUSTUS

(Gossip voice, excited)

”What was that?”

CHARLIE

(Flustered)

”Shut up.”

AUGUSTUS

(Still gossip voice)

”She totally likes you, mein mann!”

Charlie, even more flustered, moves himself and Augustus up from the grass and away from Veruca.

CHARLIE

(Loudly, pointing at the chocolate waterfall)

”Oh, what’s that?”

Wonka appears behind them.

WILLY WONKA

”That, my friend, is my very own chocolate waterfall. We’re the only factory in the world that mixes chocolate via waterfall. Makes the chocolate extra light and frothy.”

AUGUSTUS

”Wow.”

WILLY WONKA

”Agreed. Now, on with the tour, shall we?”

**INT. The Salty Sea-room.**

The next room has tall glass walls on all sides, on the other side of which we see a full candy aquarium: sugar corals and rubbery seaweed grows on rocks as small candy fish in all the colors of the rainbow primitively drift around, tails wagging just a little bit. In the back of the aquarium, actual several-meter-long sharks are swimming. In the center of the room, a machine is pumping out bubbles. The machine is perched in the middle of a floor-height aquarium, like a kiddie pool. There are rocks and sugar corals in here as well, corals making up some sort of shelves for a collection of colorful bottles.

WILLY WONKA

”This is the Salty Sea room! Be careful around the glass: the sharks have quite the sweet teeth, but they don’t mind meat if they’ve been offered.”

Scarlett backs up, horrified. Violet goes ahead.

NORMAN

”Ehm, actually, sharks don’t particularly like the taste of human and would much rather eat other marine life. The notion that sharks often attack humans is exaggerated by the media.”

Willy smiles at him. Bubbles drift past his face.

WILLY WONKA

”Sharks aren’t known to eat candy, either.”

He nods toward a shark just as it bites down on some candy fish. Norman swallows and shuts up.

RUPERT

(Looking through the glass)

”What is this room for, exactly?”

WILLY WONKA

”Tell me, what is saltwater taffy without real saltwater? What is a candy fish if it may never swim?”

AUGUSTUS

”Regular saltwater taffy doesn’t have saltwater in it!”

WILLY WONKA

(Not listening)

”The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew, the furrow followed free; we were the first that ever burst into that silent sea.”

Augustus exchanges looks with Charlie. They’re both confused, but also thoroughly enjoying this tour so far.

Mike pokes the bubble machine.

MIKE

”Is this a bong?”

Willy smiles again. Did he ever stop?

WILLY WONKA

”That, dear Mike, is my fizzy lifting machine. It makes-"

(He pops a bubble for each following word)

"Fizzy. Lifting. Drink.”

People are intrigued.

WILLY WONKA

”Yes. Bubbles, bubbles everywhere, but not a drop to drink, yet. It’s in beta testing, you see. Far too powerful.”

Joe and Charlie are on the same wonkamaniac brainwave. The brainwave says hell yes to this fizzy levitation beverage.

JOE AND CHARLIE

(Not quite syncronised, but at the same time)

”Can we try?”

WILLY WONKA

(Amused (but isn’t he always?) and encouraging, somehow)

”No, no, it’s far too powerful. Were I to try it outside, I would never come down. Now, on with the tour, friends!”

His words say no but his voice says yes. As the tour group moves along, Joe hangs behind. Charlie begins to follow them, but realizes.

JOE

”Let’s take a drink, Charlie, nobody’s watching.”

Charlie considers the offer.

**INT. The Edible Furniture-room.**

A snippet (beginning of first verse, more or less) of _Goofy_ by MishCatt plays over the following shot, fading out after.

We see a close-up of Violet, center camera. She looks uncomfortable. The camera zooms out, and as we do, we see a few of the guests eating the furniture in this seemingly normal room - Augustus is chomping down on a metallic-looking lampshade, Norman is carefully tasting a sofa cushion, Frau Gloop is peeling off fruit-patterned wallpaper and rolling it into tubes for later. The camera reaches max distance, and we see a full body shot of Violet as Mike walks in front of her, smashes a chair to the floor, and takes a bite out of one of the legs.

MIKE

”This one’s fudge.”

(To Violet)

”Want some?”

He holds out the fudge chair leg. Violet shakes her head and chews her gum a little faster.

Meanwhile, Scarlett is leaning against the wall next to Willy Wonka, overviewing the furniture chaos with a mad glint in his eyes.

WILLY WONKA

”Yes, that’s the spirit! Here, the paper _is_ edible!”

Scarlett leans closer to him. Willy doesn’t move.

SCARLETT

”Willy Wonka the second, was it?”

WILLY WONKA

”Unless I was lying, yes.”

Scarlett laughs.

SCARLETT

”Interesting. You don’t happen to have any siblings, do you?”

She runs a finger over the shoulder of Wonka’s suit jacket. He raises an eyebrow.

WILLY WONKA

”No, I don’t. Single child, sole heir, all that jazz.”

Scarlett leans in a little bit closer.

SCARLETT

”Very interesting. Tell me some more.”

Meanwhile, Veruca is standing in a corner with Rupert, talking in low voices.

VERUCA

”This is just another showroom.”

RUPERT

”I’m sure things will get more exciting soon, angel.”

VERUCA

”So far this tour is all play and no work.”

RUPERT

”The Sea Room had the bubble machine, sweetheart.”

VERUCA

”Right. We miss a hundred percent of shots we don’t take, don’t we-”

Augustus, enjoying himself, darts past Veruca with a cup of sugary juice. The cup, shaped like a teacup, is also edible, as evidenced by a couple of bites in the rim.

The liquid splashes and spills onto the skirt of Veruca’s expensive pink silk dress.

VERUCA

(Augustus shouldn’t have done that)

”HOW DARE YOU?”

AUGUSTUS

(He shouldn’t have done that)

”I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

Frau Gloop is already there, whipping out wet napkins from her handbag.

VERUCA

(Practically spitting in Augustus’ face)

”DO YOU KNOW how much this dress costs? Do you know? Can you fathom it? Do you know how many chocolate bars you would have to give up to recompense?”

RUPERT

(Not going to get in the way of his daughter but does have to give input)

”Sweetheart, I’ll buy you a new one-”

VERUCA

”That’t not changing the fact that I’ll spend the rest of the tour looking like Jo March!”

The Frau, furiously apologizing in both German and English, is now cleaning up the stain best she can with her wet napkins.

VERUCA

”Oh, sure, whatever, just spread the stain around. You don’t just remove stains from charmeuse, everyone knows that!”

Augustus is on the verge of tears. Veruca bites the inside of her lip and just glares at him, resorting to the silent treatment now.

The Frau has gone through multiple napkins at this point, and finally rises. The stain is mostly gone, but there’s a greyish shadow where it used to be.

FRAU

”We are so so sorry! We promise we will make it up to you!”

Veruca just continues to glare. She waves them away with a ”leave me, now”-attitude, and they do.

We see the Gloops from the front as they walk away. Augustus is crying a little bit. The Frau puts an arm around him and tries to comfort.

FRAU

(Comforting)

”Sie meint es nicht so, Liebling. Sie meint es nicht.”

**INT. The Salty Sea-room.**

Song playing in the background: _Nine In The Afternoon_ by Panic! At The Disco.

Charlie cracks open a bottle from the coral shelves and hands it to Joe, who takes a swig. When Joe’s done, Charlie tastes.

JOE

”Not bad.”

Joe begins lifting from the floor. Charlie follows not shortly after.

They laugh and glide around, moving around in the air and waving after bubbles as they slowly float around. We get some beautiful shots of them with the aquarium background, faces lit blue by the water. It’s the underwater photoshoot of someone's dreams.

JOE

”Look at me, my boy, I’m a bird.”

As Joe makes bird movements, we can see that they’re nearing the top of the aquarium. There’s another level to the room. Though mostly unlit, we see metal walkways over the aquarium, ways to easily feed the sharks or get a topside view. The few bubbles who make it up there are quickly dispersed from the center, floating over the metal walkways before popping.

Charlie laughs and mimics his grandfather. The poor teen hasn’t had this much fun in his life. Meanwhile, their feet are about the height of the walkways.

Charlie’s hair starts blowing, as if caught by a wind.

Still laughing, he looks up.

There’s a huge metal fan right above him.

CHARLIE

”Grandpa...”

Joe notices it too and bird motions himself away from the fan. He’s about to be floating over the aquarium when a shark approaches the surface, fin peeking over the water.

Joe remembers Willy’s comment about the sharks and, despite not being dead quite yet, turns white as a ghost.

Charlie’s being drawn towards the fan, caught in the wind current. He puts a hand against a safe piece of metal blocking the middle part of the fan, trying to figure out a way down.

Joe burps and loses some height. His shoe dips the surface of the aquarium and the shark snaps at it, just missing.

JOE

”Burp, my boy, burp for your life!”

Charlie burps and also loses some height. Joe grabs Charlie’s foot and pulls himself away from the danger of the aquarium, the both of them burping furiously.

Charlie’s head has just passed the aquarium edge when he looks up.

In the shadows of the walkway, we see a man. Short (some would call him a manlet), curly hair, face just barely lit up blue by the aquarium light. He is walking away, but for a second, he looks back.

Charlie blinks. In the next shot of the walkway, the man is gone.

**INT. The Jelly-Floor Harbor.**

The Jelly-Floor Harbor is a lofty tunnel with a medium sized platform against one wall, the floor of which is made of blocks of hardened jelly. The chocolate river flows past the group and out of the tunnel. In the far distance, the tunnel opens into the candy forest.

Charlie enters the room and sneaks into the back of the small guest crowd, joining up with Augustus.

AUGUSTUS

(Shushed)

”How was it?”

CHARLIE

(Shushed)

”Fizzy. I snagged some for you for later.”

Charlie flashes a small bottle before slipping it back into his pant pocket.

AUGUSTUS

(Shushed)

”Epic. Thanks, mein mann.”

WILLY WONKA

(Tour guide voice)

”Look at that! We’ve made it all the way to the Jelly-floor harbor! That’s a major milestone!”

VERUCA

(Low, but intentionally audible to everyone around her)

”No thanks to mister Fat Comic Relief over there.”

CHARLIE

(Low, worried/surprised, unintentionally audible to everyone around him)

”What did you do?”

Augustus looks deeply ashamed and pulls Charlie aside. We don’t follow them yet, though, instead remaining with the group.

Rupert has his phone out and is pacing back and forth, looking for reception. He isn’t getting it.

RUPERT

”I’ve got an important phone call to take. Are there any rooms with reception?”

WILLY WONKA

”No!”

Rupert makes a sceptical business face.

WILLY WONKA

”The whole factory is a dead zone. You can’t take that important phone call within these walls.”

MIKE

(Explaining to Rupert)

”Wi-fi dead zones often happen in factories because there are a lot of walls with a lot of wires that interfere with the signal. Logically there should be some rooms higher up with better reception.”

WILLY WONKA

”Nope! Total dead zone! You would have to go via the internal system!”

RUPERT

”May I go via the internal system?”

WILLY WONKA

”If you want me to get ahold of all your personal information.”

A beat. Rupert looks nervous.

WILLY WONKA

”Kidding, kidding! No, you may not.”

Meanwhile, Augustus and Charlie have been talking. Augustus caught Charlie up on the incident off-screen. We join them in the middle of the conversation.

AUGUSTUS

”Mom had - oh what are they called, you know, babytücher...? Oh! Wet napkins. She had wet napkins and I think she got the stain out but...”

CHARLIE

”You’re both overreacting. It’s just a stain. I have to wear clothes for weeks at a time when things are bad and you know, stains really aren’t that hard to get out.”

Augustus looks down.

CHARLIE

”Do you not know how to get a stain out?”

AUGUSTUS

(Deeply, deeply ashamed)

”Mama always puts my clothes in the washing machine for me when they get dirty.”

Charlie is grasping multiple concepts here. He figures out an order to bring them up in.

CHARLIE

”Look, I can tell this bothers you, but Veruca can definitely afford to get that stain out and it’s not as if you were building a soul bond with her or anything, right? When the tour is over, she’ll forget all about it. Until then, I’ll help you avoid her. This will be fine.”

Augustus nods. He sniffles.

AUGUSTUS

”Thanks.”

CHARLIE

(Putting points together)

”Yeah, no problem. Bigger issue though: do you not do your own laundry?”

AUGUSTUS

”No.”

CHARLIE

(Just a little bit exasperated)

”Do you help out with _anything_ at home?”

AUGUSTUS

(Quiet)

”Mom always does things and dad doesn’t have to help, so...”

Charlie breathes. He might raise and point a hand like that old boi-hand-meme. It depends on the integrity of the actor playing Charlie Bucket in this Roald Dahl-themed teen drama.

CHARLIE

”Okay. Your mom is doing all the housework and you, a teen- how old are you?”

AUGUSTUS

(Voice merely a squeaky toy in the mouth of god)

”Seventeen.”

His actor is closer to twenty-six than seventeen, but the show lacks awareness of this and plays this scene completely straight.

CHARLIE

”You, a seventeen-year-old, presumably don’t know how to do laundry. Your mom does everything. Does she have a job on top of this?”

AUGUSTUS

(Utterly at Charlie’s mercy)

”She also works the Wurstfabrik cash register.”

CHARLIE

”Augustus, I get up at five in the morning to deliver newspapers. After school, I go directly home, because I have to take care of four bed-ridden ninety-year olds. My mom works extra long shifts to make ends meet. I don’t have the luxury to sit around all day while she does all the housework. This tour? This is my one time off, and even now I can’t stop thinking about how my parents are managing without me.”

He breathes. A beat.

CHARLIE

”We’re in very different situations, I’m sorry.”

Augustus blinks, Charlie’s monologue sinking in. He looks up, a new resolve in his eyes.

AUGUSTUS

”Don’t be sorry. You’re right.”

CHARLIE

”I am?”

AUGUSTUS

”Yeah! I’m too old to be lazy! You know what? From now on I’m gonna try to help out!”

CHARLIE

”Wow. This is not how I was expecting this conversation to go. I was unleashing some big feelings there.”

Augustus has had a personal revelation. He genuinely wants to start helping out.

AUGUSTUS

”I’m glad you did.”

Charlie isn’t taken aback, but it’s close.

CHARLIE

”That’s what... friends are for?”

Augustus smiles.

AUGUSTUS

”That’s what friends are for.”

He holds up a fist, expecting a bump. Charlie hesitatingly bumps it. Augustus chuckles.

AUGUSTUS

”You’re letting me make you cool in exchange though.”

He continues the bump with the pull back-flying motion. Charlie has already lowered his arm. Augustus nods towards the failed bump extravaganza. A perfect example of Charlie not being Cool.

CHARLIE

”Deal.”

Meanwhile, Willy does a series of extravagant poses as a boat drifts down the canal and into the harbor. It’s a light brown cookie-like color, with inlays of dark chocolate brown. The keel of the boat is slick with chocolate, either from sailing the chocolate river or because it’s made of it. There are rows of seats in the boat for everyone to sit, and no other visible mechanics.

Willy bows dramatically, his hands swinging up to highlight the boat. He then rises and smiles like somebody who’s about to make a great pun.

WILLY WONKA

”This is my Chocolate Ship Cookie!”

Mike audibly groans.

We see the Chocolate Ship Cookie, camera placed behind the crowd. Augustus and Charlie have rejoined the crowd now and are admiring the boat. Willy gracefully jumps up and balances on the railing. He pokes in front of him with his foot, and a small gangway falls down.

WILLY WONKA

”All aboard!”

NORMAN

(Raising his hand but speaking without being called on)

”Ehm, do we have to get on?”

WILLY WONKA

”Norman dear, you do if you intend to complete the tour. Of course, we could always leave you here, let you find your own way out.”

It sounds a little bit like a threat.

NORMAN

”It’s just, ehm, it doesn’t look seaworthy.”

WILLY WONKA

”The poor fool feared the Chocolate Wreck, said it couldn’t possibly float, but as he stepped upon the deck, he found it was another boat.”

The group hesitates, and then grandpa Joe walks up the gangway and boards the Chocolate Ship Cookie. He tests his ground, then turns and shrugs.

JOE

”It’s just another boat.”

WILLY WONKA

”See?”

Norman swallows, but is shoved onboard by Mike.

Everyone takes a seat, two by two, in the pairs they came in. Wonka stands at the helm of the ship. The rudder is just a giant chocolate chip cookie.

WILLY WONKA

”Alas, thought I, and my heart beat loud: how fast she nears and nears! Are those her sails that glance in the sun, like restless gossameres?”

Veruca gives Violet a ”can you believe this guy”-look across the isle. Violet attempts a half smirk-”I know, right?”. It doesn’t look quite right, but Scarlett nods approvingly once the moment passes.

Frau Gloop’s eyes suddenly pop open. She stirs,erratic, looking around her seat.

FRAU

”Oh dear, I have forgotten my coat and hat in the forest room.”

Augustus pops up.

AUGUSTUS

”I’ll get it, mama.”

The Frau opens her eyes wide in surprise, but then slips back into mom smile mode. She kisses Augustus on the cheek out of pride for her helpful boy.

FRAU

”Danke, Liebling.”

Augustus stumbles off of the boat and hurries back through the candy rooms.

As he disappears, Rupert also rises.

RUPERT

”If we’re stopped, I find I’ve misplaced my pocket watch as well.”

WILLY WONKA

”And where do you plan to look?”

RUPERT

”The aquarium. I’m sure I must’ve misplaced it there.”

Willy smiles like a parent at a very stupid child, about to talk down to it. Veruca quickly puts away her phone and moves a little bit closer to the titular candy man.

VERUCA

”So what’s this boat made out of?”

Willy diverts his attention and launches into an explanation Augustus would surely be very disappointed to know he’s missing.

WILLY WONKA

”Well! One would think that jelly would do the trick - it’s the better aesthetic choice, is it not? - but...”

Meanwhile Rupert walks down the gangway and vanishes into the previous rooms.

We see a close-up of Mike, looking off the boat attentively. We understand that he’s noticed Rupert’s escape.

**INT. The Candy Forest.**

Song playing in the background: _Watermelon Sugar_ by Harry Styles.

Augustus runs through the exit way and into the candy forest. He immediately stops and rests his hands on his knees, panting. This is the most exercise he’s done in years.

He looks around the candy forest for his mom’s things. We get some different shots, Augustus looking around trees and lifting candy bushes in a half-cartoonish fashion. How does he think misplacing things happens? Not sure, but at least he’s being thorough.

We see his mom’s things. Her coat is lying on a marzipan fondant rock. Augustus smiles in relief and goes forward to get it. He places it over his arm.

He begins to walk back when he looks in the direction of the river.

We see a shot from the waterline (chocolateline) of the river. Up on the riverbank, Augustus stands in focus, looking into the water. Close to the camera, his mom’s hat is drifting down the river. Focus fades from Augustus and focuses on the hat.

Back to good old medium shots, Augustus gets close to the edge of the river. He hangs the coat in a caramel tree and looks around. He finds some candy canes sticking out of the ground and pulls one out.

Augustus kneels by the river side and pokes the candy cane out over the river, using it to reel in the hat. It hooks around the brim of the hat, and when he pulls in the cane, the hat follows.

Shot from waterline, but closer to Augustus’ riverbank. The hat bumps into the riverbank. Augustus discards the candy cane, placing it off-screen. He reaches down to grab the hat.

Extreme closeup on Augustus. He looks down, focused, and then we see his eyes bare. He opens his mouth to say something. We don’t get to hear what it is.

 _Watermelon Sugar_ ends on one final ”watermelon sugar”.

**INT. The Jelly-floor Harbor.**

It’s been a while since Augustus left. We can tell because everyone looks bored. Even Veruca is slumped in her seat, looking around impatiently.

VERUCA

(Irritated)

”How long could it possibly take to get a coat?”

MIKE

”Your dear old daddy isn’t back either, princess.”

Veruca snaps around.

VERUCA

(Hissing)

”I will keelhaul you, Michael.”

MIKE

”Anything to-”

Norman clasps a hand over his son’s mouth.

NORMAN

”That’s enough of that. I, ehm, think that’s Rupert now.”

Rupert steps out onto the platform and walks the gangway up onto the ship.

WILLY WONKA

”Rupert! What a delight. Did you find your pocket watch?”

Rupert pulls it out of his suit pocket.

RUPERT

”Yes, it appears I did.”

WILLY WONKA

”Charming. Well, take your seats, everybody.”

The Frau rises.

FRAU

”What about my son?”

WILLY WONKA

”What about him?”

CHARLIE

”He hasn’t returned.”

WILLY WONKA

”Oh. Rupert, did you see him in the Salty Sea-room or Edible Furniture-room?”

RUPERT

”No.”

Willy lifts up the gangway.

WILLY WONKA

”Then he’ll be in the forest, no doubt still looking for that coat of yours. We’ll pick him up on the way.”

FRAU

”But-”

WILLY WONKA

”No buts! The only buts I’ll allow on my ship are your butts, in your seats, right now.”

The Frau sits down. She frowns.

The Chocolate Ship Cookie begins floating down the chocolate river.

Charlie grasps the railing and looks down into the chocolate. Violet stops chewing her gum. She’s not a boat person.

**INT. The Candy Forest, on boat.**

The Chocolate Ship Cookie exits the tunnel, now drifting through the candy forest. The Frau, Charlie, and Joe all look over the edge, searching for Augustus, but he’s nowhere to be seen. The boat passes the Frau’s coat, hanging in a caramel tree.

FRAU

”That’s not where I put it... where is my son?”

Willy shrugs.

WILLY WONKA

”He must have gotten lost.”

Joe gasps and points into the river. The Frau’s hat is bobbing in the chocolate.

FRAU

(Not smiling)

”Why is mein hut in the river?”

WILLY WONKA

”He must have dropped it. I don’t know where he is.”

The Frau smiles like she’s about to lose it. The red of her cheeks is no longer a cute blush, but rather something like anger, building up in a woman who very rarely gets angry.

She doesn’t get angry now, either. She breathes in and out and smiles normally at Willy.

FRAU

”You must stop the boat.”

Willy shrugs again.

WILLY WONKA

”Sure!”

**INT. The Candy Forest, on land.**

We see the group in the middle of searching. Camera pans down from up above, focused on Frau Gloop, now wearing her coat, who stops to call for her son.

FRAU

”Augustus? Augustus! Liebling?”

Charlie backs up into the shot, also calling for Augustus.

CHARLIE

”Augustus? You around here?”

Veruca is still in her seat on the boat. She leans over the railing to talk to them.

VERUCA

”He’s not here, stop trying.”

CHARLIE

(Hopeful and insistent)

”People don’t just disappear.”

Joe and Norman enter from the sea room.

JOE

”He isn’t in there. We checked everywhere.”

The Frau cups her face in her hands. Charlie doesn’t know what to do.

CHARLIE

(Comforting)

”He’ll be fine.”

FRAU

(Upset)

”Where could he be?”

Willy is sitting on the gangway, not helping.

WILLY WONKA

”He must’ve taken a wrong turn. It’s easy. This is just what happens when you separate from the group.”

The Frau starts sobbing. Norman raises an eyebrow.

NORMAN

”You’re putting a lot of emphasis on, ehm, bad things happening if we leave the group.”

WILLY WONKA

”This isn’t a bad thing! I intend to show you all of my factory, and because he’s not in the rooms you’ve already seen that means we’re guaranteed to run into him again later! Simple logic, Normal, simple logic.”

NORMAN

”Norman.”

WILLY WONKA

”Sure. Do you want to do a final sweep of the room, or shall we be off?”

The Frau fishes a handkerchief out of her handbag and wipes her tears.

FRAU

”I don’t want him to wait. All alone out there somewhere. Terrible!”

WILLY WONKA

”You’re a brave woman, Frau Gloop.”

 _Must have Been The Wind_ by Alec Benjamin plays from the chorus as we get a shot from above. The camera slowly zooms out as the group boards the boat and sits down. Wonka waves his hands and says something inaudible. The Chocolate Ship Cookie continues down the river. Finally, it drifts out of view.


	3. S1E3 - Strike that, reverse it

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which people are suspicious of each other and Charlie stands guard.
> 
> Previously on Candyman:  
> Charlie made fast friends with Augustus, but then, Augustus disappeared while getting his mom's coat. Veruca and her father are up to something, and it involves a man named Slugworth. Violet's mother, Scarlett, has her on an extremely strict diet, and has taken a keen interest in Willy Wonka, even flirting with him a little bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for:  
> Comments about bodies, homophobic language, withholding of food and related manipulation (Scarlett is a bad mother), hunger, rapid weight gain, verbally abusive parent (Scarlett is a very bad mother), fatphobia, gunshots, and blood.

**INT. Production Walkway.**

For budget and time reasons, the boat ride has been removed from the script.

The show version of _The Candy Man_ is playing.

We see the Chocolate Ship Cookie pull to a stop next to a small dock in a lofty tunnel. The tunnel continues into the distance. One side, the one with a walkway, is lined with labeled doors.

Willy Wonka, at the helm of the ship, instructs his tour group to disembark. He’s saying something, but the music drowns it out. Whatever it is, there are two exclamation marks in there somewhere, and his body language reflects this.

Cut to a shot from the walkway. We see the tour group walk down the gangway, a few at a time.

Rupert Salt gets off the ship first, eyeing the walls and doors of the tunnel. Following him, we see Scarlett Beauregarde. Instead of looking around, she is acutely paying attention to daughter Violet Beauregarde, standing by the walkway with Veruca Salt.

The music fades out.

VERUCA

”Blue really is your color.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Thanks.”

Veruca hooks an arm under Violet’s arm and walks with her down the gangway.

VERUCA

”You know, I have a stunning blue dress that would look just gorgeous with your body. It’s back at the hotel, and I would just love for you to try it on before I go back overseas.”

Violet is taken off guard. Pleasantly so, but still.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”I’d like that.”

VERUCA

”Great!”

She pokes Violet teasingly.

VERUCA

(Unintentionally bitchy)

”Guess we’ll have to hold back on the treats until then.”

The girls walk off-screen and focus shifts to the next pair leaving the boat: Frau Gloop and Willy.

FRAU

”This corridor is so long! Augustus could be anywhere!”

WILLY WONKA

(Carefree, guiding)

”Which means he’s somewhere, doesn’t it? Likely down this very corridor. Don’t worry, Frau Gloop.”

FRAU

”Can we not search first?”

WILLY WONKA

”Definitely not, Frau Gloop. Patience is key. You’re very strong.”

He ushers her down the gangway.

Following them, Mike Teavee leaps from the ship to the walkway, computer bag slung around his shoulder in a way that makes you concerned for the computer. His father, Norman Teavee, steps forward and tries to catch him, but bumps into Joe Bucket. The two men half-mumble a series of apologies and ”no, you go ahead”s before finally, they get off the boat.

This leaves Charlie Bucket alone on the boat.

Willy approaches a door labeled INVENTING LAB and waves the group close.

WILLY WONKA

”Now, this is the most important room in the factory. Get in line, people!”

He swings open the door and enters. People follow.

Charlie steps off the boat and patiently waits his turn.

As grandpa Joe vanishes inside, Mike slides in front of the door. He leans against the door frame, blocking Charlie’s entrance inside.

MIKE

”Charlie. My man. My dude.”

CHARLIE

(Resigned to his fate)

”What do you want?”

MIKE

”Look. I know we started off on the wrong channel, but my offer still stands. You could use a main bro, a full on fair-weather friend-”

CHARLIE

”I don’t think you know what a fair-weather friend is.”

MIKE

”Words, amirite?”

He holds up a hand to high five. He does not get a high five. Charlie is exhausted just talking to him.

CHARLIE

”Look, no offense, I’m sure all the internets love you, but Augustus is gonna show up somewhere.”

Mike adjusts his Cool Leaning Pose to a different, equally cool Cool Leaning Pose.

MIKE

”That’s where I think you’re wrong, my... pal.”

CHARLIE

”Please stop.”

Mike drops the pose completely and stands normally. He looks serious, suddenly.

MIKE

(Serious)

”I think Rupert Salt did something to Augustus.”

Charlie could be either sceptical or on-board, depending on the following statement.

MIKE

”I say think because it’s not a hundred percent, per se,”

CHARLIE

”Oh, great-”

MIKE

”But the man left the tour group as soon as Augustus did, almost as if he were waiting for him to leave.”

Charlie furrows his eyebrows, thinking.

Mike nods patiently, waiting for him to catch up.

CHARLIE

”Sure. Okay. What’s your theory?”

MIKE

”The Salts have been acting sus since we entered. Rupert’s always asking questions about the factory.”

CHARLIE

”That’s the point of taking a tour.”

MIKE

”Shut. Veruca’s always on her phone, but we know she doesn’t have reception, so what is she doing?”

As he says this, we see a flashback to a previous scene. We know it’s a flashback because the image is tinted grey. The shot is cropped, focusing on Veruca. Veruca sits on a candy bench, looking at her phone.

MIKE

”They’ve snuck off to chat multiple times now, and did you even pay attention to when he left the boat? Veruca immediately dove in with questions for Wonka, but before that point she couldn’t have cared less. The first thing she ever said to him was passive-aggressive and she hasn’t dropped the streak since!”

As he says this, we see more brief flashbacks. Veruca and Rupert to the side in the living room. Veruca asking Willy why the boat is the way it is, while in the background, Rupert escapes. Veruca in the Everlasting Entrance Hallway, looking up from her phone, irritated.

Charlie blinks, surprised.

CHARLIE

”Wow. Okay, you’ve been paying attention.”

MIKE

”I’m attentive, unlike SOME idiots. That’s how I got here in the first place.”

CHARLIE

”Why, though? Augustus wasn’t exactly a mastermind.”

MIKE

”Glad you asked, noob. He spilled jelly on her dress while you were off doing god knows what.”

Charlie isn’t impressed.

MIKE

”But also, one of us gets a special price at the end of the tour, and we already know Rupert Salt will go to extreme lengths to give Veruca exactly what she wants. And when it comes to a prize? In a chocolate factory? Augustus knew a lot about candy. He was a shoo-in.”

CHARLIE

”Are you saying what I think you are?”

MIKE

”He’s a business man. He’s probably done some crap before.”

CHARLIE

”What did he do? Drown Augustus in the chocolate river?”

Mike steps aside, leaving the door open.

MIKE

”We’ll just have to find out, teammate.”

**INT. Lab Central.**

Mike and Charlie enter and rejoin the back of the group. Willy is standing in a big open space in the middle of a large industrial room. Machines, lab equipment, and ingredients line makeshift walls made out of screens on wheels. The concrete floor has more than one colorful carpet on it.

Violet notices the boys enter.

WILLY WONKA

”... so you may touch, at your own risk, but you most certainly may not knock things over!”

Rupert has wandered off to the side and is investigating a machine depositing perfectly square green cubes dipped in what looks like powdered sugar.

WILLY WONKA

”Uh-uh-uh! For legal purposes, you need to know that all substances in this room are still in testing. I cannot be held responsible for _any_ side effects you may experience during sampling.”

Rupert carefully puts down the dusted cube, wiping the powdered sugar off his fingers.

Norman raises his hand passively.

NORMAN

”Who works here?”

WILLY WONKA

”Nobody. No workers in this whole factory. It can get quite dangerous, you know.”

NORMAN

”So you... ehm... you try everything on yourself?”

WILLY WONKA

”Yes.”

NORMAN

”Mister Wonka, I’m a science teacher. These are far from ideal working conditions - you should at the very least have an assistant to report if an accident happens. You’re a wealthy man, it’s not as if you can’t afford help-”

WILLY WONKA

”That’s enough of that, Normal. My business is, well, my business.

(Brief pause, then a more suggestive tone)

”Unless you’d like to volunteer for testing, of course.”

Norman looks away and mumbles something about lab safety. He steps back in line. Mike rolls his eyes.

WILLY WONKA

”Now, this place is quite big, so I’m loosening your reins for a little while. Look around! Explore!View paradise, or at the very least, the beginnings of it!”

Mike makes eye contact with Charlie and nods as a way of letting Charlie know that he’s not going anywhere.

The group starts to split up as people head in different directions.

Rupert and Veruca step closer to each other.

VERUCA

(Low voice)

”Divide and conquer. You take the main room, I take the outer rims. If there are good ideas, they’re in here.”

RUPERT

(Equally low voice)

”Excellent strategy, angel.”

VERUCA

”All warfare is based on deception. We know nothing.”

They separate, walking away in opposite directions.

**INT. Lab Central.**

Joe taps Willy on the shoulder. Willy, who has been humming Pure Imagination to himself, stops and turns to adress Joe.

WILLY WONKA

”Yes?”

JOE

”This is about your workers - I’ve been meaning to ask-”

WILLY WONKA

”How come I laid you off, and how come I never hired new employees?”

JOE

”Something like that, yes.”

Willy smiles and tilts his head.

WILLY WONKA

”Well, first of all, though appearances may be deceiving, I am not the one who laid you off. That honor would go to my late father.”

Joe nods.

WILLY WONKA

”As for his reasons... I never knew for sure, but it may have had to do with suspicion.”

JOE

”Suspicion?”

WILLY WONKA

”My father thought his workers were spying and selling his ideas to rivals. The Slugworths, for example. The one way to make sure none of his workers got ahold of his trade secrets was to fire all of them. No... stragglers.”

Joe’s face falls. Not because he was guilty, but because he’s just realized his poverty was nothing more than a precaution on the behalf of a man who is now dead and buried.

WILLY WONKA

”I’m truly sorry, Joe. Really.”

Joe shakes his head.

JOE

”He had a point, I suppose. Still... how come you do not hire new workers? Surely the Slugworths have given up.”

WILLY WONKA

”My father was very insistent his heir do things exactly how he did them. I’m merely following my training.”

(On a lighter note)

”But your family seems to have done just fine for itself! A townhouse and everything! That’s quite the upgrade.”

Joe furrows his brow, then realizes. He gently touches his scarf, a scarf he was given specifically to make him appear middle class.

Joe smiles thinly.

JOE

(Lying)

”Yes. My army medical training payed off just fine.”

WILLY WONKA

”That’s good!”

He twirls around.

WILLY WONKA

”Now, let’s find the Frau and give this place a thorough sweep. You’re getting an exclusive tour! The Slugworths would pay good money for an opportunity like this! Enjoy it!”

**INT. Lab Central.**

We see Rupert Salt from behind a table, a distance away. Vials and various candy machinations are out of focus, on a table close to the camera. Rupert is looking at a machine seemingly churning out half see through holographic orbs. A sign next to the machine reads ”jawbreakers that don’t show up on cameras”. A red stamp next to the sign reads ”IN PROGRESS”.

We reverse shot to see Charlie and Mike, crouched behind a table, spying on him.

CHARLIE

”He’s not doing much of anything.”

MIKE

”And he won’t be if he hears us, gaylord.”

Charlie looks just a little bit more fed up with Mike’s language, but shuts up.

Rupert picks up a half orb. Tosses it from hand to hand to test out the weight.

We zoom in, camera now under the table. The camera pans up, showing us his pants, his suit jacket, his shirt cuffs. They’re all spotless.

CHARLIE

”Wouldn’t he have some sort of stain if he’d pushed Augustus in? He’s spotless.”

MIKE

”Oh, he can’t be completely spotless. Not as the majority shareholder of a major corporation.”

CHARLIE

”He’s stainless, then.”

MIKE

”Shut up!”

Rupert holds the half-visible jawbreaker thoughtfully. He looks at it, then the machine, and goes back and forth like that a couple of times.

CHARLIE (OFF SCREEN)

”I don’t know why you’re being paranoid about Mister Salt, and I honestly don’t want you to tell me, but-”

Rupert looks around to see if anybody’s watching.

Mike puts a hand over Charlie’s mouth and pushes Charlie’s shoulder down, interrupting him to duck behind the table.

Rupert concludes that nobody’s watching, pulls out his camera, and takes a picture of the jawbreaker. He chuckles at the photo, and then starts circling the machine, taking more pictures.

Mike, still crouching behind the table, punches Charlie in the arm.

MIKE

”Suck it, my dude.”

Charlie rubs his arm.

CHARLIE

”Okay, I’ll grant you suspicious activity, but-”

Camera raised to a normal level, we see Norman enter the room.

Rupert immediately sneaks his phone back into his suit pocket. He takes a step back from the machine, just admiring it.

NORMAN

”Mister Salt, good. Ehm... have you seen my son?”

RUPERT

”Regrettably, yes, but not in the vicinity, no.”

Mike, behind the table, does the ”I’ve got my eye on you” gesture a couple times.

MIKE

”We’ll reconvene. Say nothing.”

He looks out from the side of the table.

Neither Norman nor Rupert are facing his direction.

Mike rises, walking to maybe give the impression of just arriving.

MIKE

”I’m here. What?”

Norman says something. The conversation soon fades out into a blur.

Pan in on Charlie, behind the table, who has noticed something.

Norman has a white card sticking out of his pocket.

**INT. Lab Central.**

The inventing room is as alive as ever. Willy is socializing, showing Joe and Frau Gloop the various machines, occasionally exclaiming something like ”Thrilling” or ”Fascinating”.

Scarlett and Violet are standing next to each other. Despite the room being gigantic, they’ve somehow found a wall to stand in front of. It’s more of a screen, really, to sanction off the larger lab, but it has the same effect.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”I’ll skip lunch.”

SCARLETT

”Good girl.”

She puts an arm around Violet. The gesture is supposed to be loving, but she places the arm gingerly, like you would do comforting someone covered in swamp water.

SCARLETT

”I understand it takes a lot, and I just wanted to say, I’m so proud of you. You’re conquering your weight, Violet. Only when we have control over our bodies do we truly have control over our lives.”

Violet chews gum at a rapid pace.

SCARLETT

”Remember 2 Timothy 1:7?”

Violet blinks, dead eyed. She remembers.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”For the spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self discipline. I know.”

Scarlett nods.

SCARLETT

”Posture.”

Violet fixes her posture.

SCARLETT

”God does not make us timid. God does not make _winners_ timid. Now, stop staring like a rag doll and go talk. You want to win, don’t you? You’re not going to win if your competitors don’t like you. You’re not going to win if your judge doesn’t like you. Being timid and being a Beauregarde don’t go hand in hand, and you know why?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum, timid)

”Because I’m a winner.”

SCARLETT

”Good. I want to see a smile you could fall head over heels for.”

Violet smiles widely, lips closed. It’s strained and doesn't reach her eyes. Scarlett sighs.

SCARLETT

”Not good enough. Keep working on it. Now, I’m going to talk to that nice Mister Wonka. Mingle!”

**INT. Production Walkway. Later.**

Mike pulls Charlie out to the walkway, leaving the door open behind him. There’s no time. This is important.

MIKE

”We have to get that phone.”

CHARLIE

”Okay, first of all: how? Second of all: if he really did push Augustus in, he’d at least have stains on his pants, the boy would’ve made a splash.”

MIKE

(High on the thrills of real life intrigue)

”He could’ve used something to poke him in from a distance. There was a large candy cane uprooted and discarded by the riverbank.”

CHARLIE

(Mike is starting to become infectious)

”Or he could have an accomplice.”

MIKE

”Veruca is waterproof. She may have motive, but she was on the boat the whole time.”

Charlie blinks. He’s remembered something.

CHARLIE

”What if he had an accomplice outside of the group?”

Mike is intrigued.

CHARLIE

”Yeah. Yeah, when I was back in the fizzy lifting room, I saw someone, a man. He was above the aquarium.”

MIKE

”And the Willy-man specifically said he didn’t have any workers. Someone must’ve snuck this guy in.”

CHARLIE

”For example, Rupert Salt.”

MIKE

”It could be a capo.”

Charlie shrugs, not knowing what it means.

MIKE

”Like, the equivalent of a store manager in a large corporation, but for the mafia. Have you not seen _The Godfather?”_

Charlie shakes his head, no.

MIKE

”God, do you not watch tv?”

Charlie delicately tries to steer the conversation away from this. He is not in the mood to explain poverty to Mike Teavee.

CHARLIE

”So whatever he’s up to, there’s gonna be information on it on his phone.”

MIKE

”Glad you connected the dots.”

CHARLIE

”But don’t phones have passwords? How are we gonna get into it?”

Mike crosses his arms. It was at that moment that Charlie knew, he messed up.

MIKE

”Yes, Charlie, phones have passwords. With numbers in them, actually, in case you didn’t know.”

Charlie is very much not in the mood to tell a boy literally named Mike Teavee that he doesn’t own a phone. He is even less in the mood to explain the circumstances behind his non-phone ownership - father getting laid off years ago, caring for four elders, washing linens and delivering newspapers not exactly making them rake in the cash. He pauses, thinks over his next move, and once again attempts to steer the conversation away.

CHARLIE

”One of us will need to distract him-”

MIKE

”And it’s definitely not gonna be you, because you’re damn awful at distractions. You’re a standup American boy-next-door and I refuse to believe you genuinely asked me if phones have passwords. Maybe the real mystery is-”

Charlie has nowhere to run.

Violet steps out onto the walkway. She looks at them, and corrects her posture. Although her eyes are more dead than alive, we can tell she’s interested by whatever is going on.

VIOLET

”What are you doing?”

MIKE

”Uh.”

CHARLIE

(Relieved)

”Crimes. We’re planning a crimes. He made me do it.”

Charlie steps back, pointing to Mike accusingly.

Mike’s face drops at the betrayal. He clenches a fist but doesn’t raise it.

MIKE

(To Charlie)

”Dude. Not cool”

(To Violet)

”Listen. I’m not planning a crimes - a crimes? Really? Grammatically incorrect? - and to be honest, he’s been enabling _me_. If I WAS planning a crime, you wouldn’t know and I wouldn’t be wasting my time with a boy who doesn’t have a passcode on his god damn phone.”

Violet blinks, not impressed.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”What are you planning?”

MIKE

”We want to steal Rupert Salt’s phone because we think he’s suspicious.”

CHARLIE

”His idea. It was his idea. His, belonging to him.”

Mike squares his jaw. He’s pretending it doesn’t hurt that Charlie’s immediately pinning everything on him, calling his ideas stupid, at the first moment someone else knows what they’re doing. It does hurt, though.

Mike crosses his arms, placing his hands around his forearms and squeezing hard.

MIKE

”So this is probably gonna be very hard with that banging bod of yours, but can you be sneaky?”

Violet moves her gum to the other side of her mouth. She also crosses her arms.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Yes.”

MIKE

”Can you keep quiet?”

Violet nods.

MIKE

(Under his breath)

”Yeah, of course you can.”

(Normal voice)

”Alright. Let’s talk strategy.”

Violet and Mike both drop their arms and nod in understanding. Charlie watches this from his step back. This is not an outcome he was expecting.

CHARLIE

”Wait, what?”

Mike points at Charlie.

MIKE

(Strategy gamer mode)

”You’re being demoted to player three and moved to the front lines.”

CHARLIE

(Confused)

”What does that mean??”

Mike and Violet exchange glances. Violet stops chewing for a second.

VIOLET

”You’re on Verucawatch.”

**INT. Lab backrooms.**

Song playing over this scene: _Woman Like Me_ by Little Mix (feat. Nicki Minaj).

The camera focuses on a big machine, panning from one side to the other. As the machine gets tucked into the left half of the screen, the camera stops, and focus shifts. On the right, we see Veruca, moving her phone over and around the machine. She’s filming.

She pushes a small green button on the machine.

Through the phone camera, we see the machine puttering. A hard, multicolored cube runs through multiple filters, splitting into powder. It gets thinner and thinner with every level, until finally, it reaches the bottom of the machine and a hatch opens.

Veruca tilts her head, curious.

Through the phone camera, we see the powder drop into a large tub underneath the machine, already half-full. The powder is an eclectic mix of pink, orange, green, and white.

Veruca gets a pinch of powder.

Through the phone camera, we see her drizzle the powder with perfectly manicured fingers. Suddenly, we hear muffled noise in the background. Somebody’s talking.

 _Woman Like Me_ fades.

VOICE (MUFFLED)

”I know it doesn’t line up, but frankly, things never lined up to begin with!”

Veruca quickly wipes the powder off her fingertips by rubbing them together. She moves, slowly, past the machine and around the corner to investigate the noise.

Veruca peeks around the corner.

We see Scarlett and Willy, having a heated debate. They’re facing each other, unaware of Veruca.

WILLY WONKA

”Scarlett, I feel for you. I do. You’ve been through a lot.”

SCARLETT

”No-”

WILLY WONKA

(Calm)

”But as you can see, I am literally a thirty year old man. Always have been. What you’re implying is ludicrous.”

SCARLETT

(Distainful)

”You even sound like him.”

WILLY WONKA

”This is simply a case of distorted memories. Can you visualize faces? I hear some people can’t do that, can you even imagine?”

SCARLETT

(Shaking her head)

”This isn’t something you can twist yourself out of-”

She stops talking. Looks to the side.

Veruca plays dumb.

VERUCA

”Where can I find a bathroom in this god-forsaken factory?”

WILLY WONKA

”Funny you should ask! The lab bathroom for emergencies is just around here, I’ll show you.”

He walks away from Scarlett.

SCARLETT

”We’re not done, Wonka.”

WILLY WONKA

(Not facing her)

”I’m sure we aren’t, my dear.”

 _Woman Like Me_ makes a return.

Veruca follows Willy back through the lab. She lowers her phone to her side.

She covertly clicks the record button to stop recording.

**INT. Lab Central.**

Song playing over this scene: _Oh No!_ by Marina and the Diamonds.

Rupert is standing over a table, examining whatever candies are being developed on it. We, however, don’t see quite what it is, because we’re seeing it from the perspective of Mike and Violet, hiding by one of the screens and scoping the man out.

Mike mimes taking something out of a pocket.

Violet shakes her head no, she’s not exactly an experienced pickpocket.

Mike makes a thinking face and then mouths ”distraction”.

They nod in unison. Mike points Violet to a sofa with a bench-like plank back. This may be a lab for making candy, but the furniture looks like experiments gone wrong.

We see Rupert quickly look around before sliding his phone out of his pocket and taking pictures of the table contents: some regular-looking fudge.

Mike ducks behind a machine and looks for a potential distraction. He sees a table with empty lab equipment on it and heads for it, crouched.

Violet hurries to the sofa and ducks behind it.

Via phone camera, we see Rupert pick up a piece of fudge.

Via regular camera, we see him make a surprised-yet-pleased-face, like he doesn’t know quite what to make of it.

Mike picks up a glass bottle. His face has big question mark energy.

Violet leans closer to maybe look between the thin gaps between planks and accidentally pushes the sofa with her forehead. It only moves a millimeter, but it squeaks against the floor.

Rupert, suspecting he’s been discovered, puts down the fudge and lowers his phone. He looks in the direction of the sofa.

Violet freezes.

Rupert starts walking in the direction of the sofa.

Mike sees Rupert walking. He clenches his jaw and smashes the glass bottle to the floor. It breaks into a hundred pieces under his fingers.

Rupert startles and turns to determine where the sound came from. He pauses, looking suspiciously at the sofa, and then heads in the direction of the glass, his phone-filled hand trailing along the table before it reaches the edge and he sets the phone down.

Violet looks around the sofa to see Mike. She gives a thumbs up, and then points to where Rupert is heading.

Mike nods and wipes any potential glass shards off on his pants. He starts crawling away and mouths ”phone?” to Violet.

The phone is lying on the corner of the table.

Violet nods and gets up. She sneaks to the table and pockets the phone, dwelling briefly to look at the candies. On a paper, HAND FUDGE is written in loopy handwriting.

Rupert arrives by the glass shards and finds nobody there. He considers the glass on the floor and what it could mean.

Mike gets up from his crouch and rushes the final distance to the table and Violet. He gestures for them to leave this particular area.

Violet nods. _Oh No!_ ends.

**INT. Lab backrooms.**

Veruca is walking, heels clicking on the stone floor, along a thinner strip of lab used to section off bigger areas. She’s still holding her phone in her hand. Not casually, but like it’s a weapon - which, in Veruca’s hand, it is.

She turns a corner and immediately bumps into Charlie Bucket, who is caught off guard by her being here. This is exactly the type of situation he’s supposed to prevent.

CHARLIE

”Oh. Veruca. Hi. Um...”

He not-so-discreetly positions himself to block off the rest of the lab. The shot is set up in the same way it was when Mike was blocking Charlie’s entrance. This is a cinematic parallel.

Veruca raises an eyebrow.

VERUCA

”Bucket. Care to let me through?”

CHARLIE

”Yeah! Yeah. Well, it’s just- I just wanted to say...”

VERUCA

”Short and simple, Bucket.”

Charlie looks around, stuck in a situation he was not prepared for. He needs to say something, anything.

Veruca’s really pretty, too. That does not help him.

CHARLIE

”I. Like, your. Dress?”

Veruca, uncharacteristically, snorts. She immediately realizes and puts on her poker face, smiling just a little bit.

VERUCA

”Your little big friend ruined this dress, casanova.”

CHARLIE

”Yes. Yes, that’s why- so- it’s not noticeable, the stain, but I. Noticed you got upset and just wanted to make sure that... that...”

VERUCA

(Sure, she’ll play this game)

”That I wasn’t a wreck over something that ultimately doesn’t matter?”

CHARLIE

”Yes. NO. No, that’s not it, I’m- damn-”

Veruca puts a hand on her hip, amused with the fact that Charlie’s stumbling down this conversation and hitting his head on every single step.

CHARLIE

(Getting his bearings, finally)

”You still look good, is what I’m trying to say- saying. Saying. Would you want to... hang out? Check out the lab?”

Veruca smirks.

**INT. Lab Waiting Room.**

Mike and Violet hurry into a small sitting area, like a waiting room. A single bench stands against a screen, facing an empty coffee table. There’s a tacky yellow-and-green mat. That’s about it, really.

MIKE

(Gasping for breath, having the lung capacity of an average gamer)

”This place.... really has everything.”

VIOLET

(Barely affected by running, chewing gum)

”Sometimes you have to sit and waitfor yourself to start testing.”

MIKE

(Panting)

”Hate it... when... that happens.”

Mike half-collapses onto the bench. Violet remains standing.

MIKE

”The... the ph- the... f-”

Violet hands him the phone.

MIKE

(Calming down)

”GG.”

Mike adjusts his position and now sits crosslegged on the bench. He takes out his computer from the computer bag slung over his shoulder and places it in his lap.

Typing something in using one hand, he uses his other hand to take out a phone charger from a pocket in the bag. He stops typing and plugs the charger into both the computer and the phone.

MIKE

”I’ve got a decrypting program running. We’ll be in soon. Sit down, you did good.”

He watches his screen idly for a few seconds, then looks up.

Violet hasn’t moved.

He considers saying something, then realizes. He’s a notorious asshole. Why would she choose to sit next to him?

MIKE

”It’s not- I’m not gonna- oh, go to hell.”

He hesitates before typing, fingers resting a centimeter over the keys, before squeezing his hand hard into a fist for several seconds and unfurling.

And then, he starts typing.

**INT. Lab Backrooms.**

Joe and the Frau enter. The Frau immediately starts looking for her son in here as well, leaving center screen soon after appearing. Joe looks around, in awe. So much has changed.

Reverse shot. We see Rupert lift a sheet to peek under. He raises an eyebrow, impressed, and his hands move to the pocket where his phone used to be.

As we know, it isn’t there.

Rupert is concerned. He turns, discovering Joe and the Frau.

RUPERT

”You. Have you seen my phone?”

Joe barely knows what a mobile phone is.

JOE

”No, but I can help you search.”

Rupert sighs.

RUPERT

(To the Frau)

”My phone, have you seen it?”

The Frau peeks up. She’s been searching for her son under the table Charlie and Mike hid under earlier.

FRAU

(Distraught)

”Nein.”

Rupert takes a deep breath.

RUPERT

”Call it. I will give you my number and I will pay you. A tidy sum at that.”

The Frau blinks. This is a complicated situation for her in particular, because as much as she wants to help - a lot. She wants to help a lot - there’s no payment she wants other than her son, back in her arms, so she can fuss over him getting lost and maybe, just maybe, have an excuse to hug him again.

She smiles, strained, and twists her finger around the buttons on her coat. She never was affectionate enough. That is to say, she was affectionate, she made a point of being affectionate, but maybe that wasn’t enough. What if she drove him away?

Rupert, getting stressed, walks up to her and takes out a business card, waving it in front of her eyes.

RUPERT

”Worth the trouble, Frau Gloop.”

This man is offering money to find a phone. It’s just a thing. It shouldn’t matter, her whole son is missing! She doubles up on her smile, but really, she’d love to chew him out, give him a piece of her mind. The good thing about German is that foreigners will think anything is a swearword if you shout it loud enough.

Instead, she pulls out her own phone.

FRAU

”No trouble at all!”

She types in the number, multiple times looking up from her phone to double-check the digits.

Rupert grows more anxious by the digit.

JOE

”Worst case scenario, a successful man like yourself can just buy a new one.”

RUPERT

”I- yes. You are quite right. Inconvenient, though.”

JOE

”I managed for a quite big chunk of my life. Back during the factory days, we communicated via tame squirrels.”

Rupert pauses.

RUPERT

”I’m sure you did.”

JOE

”It’s true! They were fed with the excess nut shells from the No-Nonsense-Nutting-You-Can-Do-About-It-Bars, and would run just about anywhere for the right nut. Of course, you had to figure out who liked what, and the foreman really hated them-”

The Frau interrupts, holding up the phone. The screen simply reads ”NO RECEPTION”.

Rupert looks like he’s about to leave the room to punch a wall.

JOE

”Young Wonka did say something about an internal system.”

The adults exchange looks. There’s no other choice.

**INT. Production Walkway.**

Playing softly in the background, lending ambience, is _Meet Me In The Woods_ by Lord Huron. It will tone down and fade away when the silence is broken.

Charlie and Veruca are out on the walkway, walking along the flowing chocolate stream. Veruca is looking at Charlie. Charlie is having a hard time looking at Veruca without falling apart at the seams.

CHARLIE

”So, uh. What do you do- on your phone, what. What have you been, why-”

VERUCA

”Why have I been on my phone so much during the tour?”

Charlie nods.

VERUCA

”Nothing much. General phone things. The standard.”

CHARLIE

”What’s the standard?”

Veruca smirks at him and weighs the amount of information she’s allowed to give him. She, naturally, settles for being vague and quoting the classics.

VERUCA

”Like the great Scott Fitzgerald once wrote, there are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy, and the tired. You may pick whichever role you choose, but I will not be caught red-handed being anything but the... pursuing.”

CHARLIE

”I think I’m the busy in that scenario.”

VERUCA

”That’s not what a lady wants to hear, Bucket.”

CHARLIE

”No, I meant- That’s Great Gatsby, right? That quote can be applied to relationships, yes, but it’s also about getting things done in general. If you’re pursuing, you’re actively going after, say, your goals. I kinda can’t do that in my day-to-day because well... I’m busy. I’ve got things. Going on. In my life.”

Charlie’s voice dies down as he realizes he’s dangerously close to talk about his financial troubles with a girl who literally bought her way into the factory.

Veruca, meanwhile, looks impressed.

VERUCA

(Impressed)

”You’ve got a grasp on basic literary analysis, Bucket. And some baggage, apparently.”

Charlie considers his next move very carefully.

VERUCA

”Relax. I’m not going to make you talk about it. This isn’t some Big Scary interview where everything you do or say is being recorded.”

She opens her eyes wide for dramatic effect, and then settles back into normal Veruca. Charlie smiles thankfully.

VERUCA

”Pose with me.”

She pulls Charlie next to her and turns them so that the Chocolate Chip Cookie is visible behind them. With her free hand, she pulls up her phone and sets her camera to selfie mode.

Via the phone camera, we see Veruca strike a pose and Charlie struggle to figure out what he’s supposed to do with his face. The end result is a picture with Charlie looking very confused. Veruca is gorgeous, as always.

VERUCA

”We’ll work on it.”

CHARLIE

”We will?”

Veruca, still on her phone, continues walking. She turns around and walks backwards.

Charlie stands still.

Veruca looks up from her phone.

VERUCA

”We don’t have all day, Bucket.”

Charlie catches up to her. For a moment, they just walk next to each other. Chocolate flows quietly in the chocolate river.

CHARLIE

”So why did you want a golden ticket?”

VERUCA

”Honestly? The fame. Dad’s corporation is a big Slugworth provider, so I was honestly never much of a wonkarer.”

CHARLIE

”Oh, right. Nut business.”

VERUCA

”Yeah. It’s kind of nuts, really.”

Charlie raises an eyebrow.

VERUCA

”No, really. You wouldn’t believe some of his business stories. I’m kinda scared I’ll come home one day and my room will be filled with walnuts because some rival saw me at the offices and decided I was a prime target.”

CHARLIE

”Would you say it’s NUT your dream scenario?”

VERUCA

(Sarcastically)

”Ha, ha. I would say nut-ing of the sort.”

She nudges him on the shoulder.

VERUCA

”You. Why did you want a golden ticket?”

CHARLIE

”I am actually a wonkarer, kind of. Do you have to eat Wonka a lot to be a true wonkarer? Long time fan, anyway. Growing up outside the factory was kind of like growing up right outside an amusement park.”

VERUCA

(Joking)

”This place is almost literally an amusement park.”

CHARLIE

”I know, right? It’s very hard not to be a fan when you walk past the factory every time you go to school. I used to slow down when I got to the factory and take these deep breaths to really savor the chocolate smell, and then that’s what kept me going through the school day, just the smell of newly mixed chocolate. It didn’t matter how hungry I got, because I could just look out the window and that know on the way home, I’d get another lungful.”

As he’s been saying this, Veruca has been looking at him, listening intently. Her face is relaxed, calm, enjoying the story, but as it gets to the end, she looks a little concerned.

VERUCA

”That sounds really nice, but Charlie, could you not aff-”

They approach a door at the end of the walkway. It’s metal, no windows, with a keypad to the side. Across the door, in bright orange, it says ”GOBSTOPPERS”.

VERUCA

”Shall we?”

She tries the handle. The door doesn’t budge.

VERUCA

”It’s locked.”

She snaps a picture of the door, and another of the keypad. Charlie watches, silent. Veruca looks across her shoulder and smirks.

VERUCA

(Lying, and doing it well)

”Anything can go viral if you caption it well. That was social media prep.”

CHARLIE

”Hashtag locked door?”

VERUCA

”More like hashtag when Wonka said he was going to show us every room in his factory he was lying.”

CHARLIE

”What’s so special about gobstoppers?”

Close-up on Veruca.

VERUCA

”Indeed. What _is_ so special about gobstoppers?”

**INT. The lab emergency bathroom.**

Joe enters. The emergency bathroom is brightly lit. The walls, though mainly made up of white bricks, are inlaid with occasional bricks of orange, green, purple, and pink, mixed in for a kick of color.

In the background, water is running. Joe squints against the lights.

JOE

”Mister Wonka?”

We see Willy at the end of a line of sinks. He’s leaned over it, gripping the edge and looking down.

WILLY WONKA

(Low energy for Willy, normal energy for most other people)

”Yes, Joe?”

Joe approaches carefully, still not used to the lights.

JOE

”I was wondering if I may ask you a question.”

WILLY WONKA

(Still low-energy)

”Go ahead.”

Joe is two sinks away, now.

We see Willy is holding something in his hand. We don’t see exactly what.

JOE

”Mister Salt lost his phone, and, well...”

Willy isn’t looking up.

JOE

”He is wondering if the Frau could go via the internal system to call it.”

WILLY WONKA

(Low-energy)

”He sent you.”

JOE

”Yes.”

WILLY WONKA

(Low-energy)

”How... optimal of him. Well, they say not to shoot the messenger.”

Joe swallows.

JOE

”I do not mean to intrude.”

Willy shakes his head, smiling just a little bit.

WILLY WONKA

(Low-energy)

”You’re not.”

He brings the hand with something in it to his mouth, leans his head back, and swallows. Immediately, he starts bouncing on his toes. He shakes his shoulders, cracks his neck, and takes a couple breaths before finally looking at Joe.

WILLY WONKA

(Energy levels restored)

”Yes! Well, let’s get her hooked up, then! That phone isn’t going to find itself! If it really found itself it would have to be tracked constantly, and I hear tell people don’t enjoy having their personal data sold!”

He starts walking out of the bathroom, ushering Joe with him.

WILLY WONKA

”This may very well be one of very few modern establishments where companies won’t steal your data! The only way to escape capitalism is more capitalism, or something like that! How do you feel about capitalism, Joe? Good? Bad? Not your problem? Actually, capitalism is everyone’s problem, but benefiting from the system really...”

The camera remains in one spot, focused on the sink Wonka just stood at. The sink is dripping. Willy’s capitalism monologue fades out as we see them leaving the bathroom.

As the sink drips, we hear _Babylon_ by Five Seconds Of Summer fade in, from the beginning of the refrain.

For one moment, things are still. We see a drop build at the end of the tap.

It drops.

A hand enters frame. It is wearing a black glove. It turns off the tap.

The scene and music ends at the same time, right after _”Burn too bright, now the fire is gone; watch it all fall down: Babylon.”_

**INT. Lab Waiting Room.**

MIKE

”Hell. Yes. Rupert is officially my _bitch_.”

He turns the computer slightly to show Violet. She stands next to the bench, but doesn’t sit on it.

Mike starts scrolling.

He’s just skimming, but right from the get-go his camera roll is full to the brim with pictures from the factory. Machinery. Videos of candies in the lab, still in development. The occasional picture of a recipe.

MIKE

(Disappointed)

”And what a bitch he is. This is just candy! What kind of sissy just photographs candy for two hours?”

Violet chews her gum thoughtfully.

MIKE

”He really decided to information-cuck me here. Teabagging on my god damn expectations.”

Violet stops chewing.

VIOLET

”Stop scrolling.”

Mike looks at her, shrugs, and obliges.

She points at a picture.

VIOLET

”There’s someone in the background.”

Mike makes an impressed face.

He clicks the image. Violet sits down to get a closer look. They both lean in to watch.

The image is of the aquarium. It’s as aquarium-like as ever, the water ripples casting uneven blue light over the floor. Most of the image is occupied by the bubble machine, but behind the bubble machine, we can see the door to the Candy Forest is open.

We now see a zoomed in version, focused on the open door. A blurry figure is silhouetted by the light of the Candy Forest.

MIKE

”Oh my god, I’ve been un-cucked.”

VIOLET

”It’s not Augustus.”

Mike looks at her.

VIOLET

”He’s fat. This person isn’t.”

MIKE

”And everyone else was back at the boat. There’s someone else in here.”

They both look around instinctively. Mike smiles.

MIKE

(Joyful whisper)

”This is awesome.”

Violet gives him a look. Mike shrugs in that kind of yeah-you-heard-me-kind of way.

MIKE

(Whisper)

”It’s like in a movie. Not quite like Die Hard- actually, maybe like Die Hard but if we were the ones occupying the building-”

VIOLET

(Whisper, chewing gum)

”Like a slasher film.”

MIKE

(Whisper)

”Yeah.”

VIOLET

(Whisper, chewing gum)

”Slasher films never end well.”

MIKE

(Whisper)

”It’s gonna turn out to be like, a plumber or some crap. Just let me have this.”

VIOLET

(Loudly, chewing gum)

”Let you be murdered?”

MIKE

”Shut up. I’d survive a horror movie. One of those classic slasher murder cabins has to have a gun cabinet. I’d stack up and try out my virtual gun skills in real life.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”And then you’d miss.”

MIKE

”Oh, let me have this.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”You raise this hunting rifle you’re way too confident in and point it at the killer and then you’re not prepared for what it feels like to actually fire a gun and miss. The bullet hits a grandfather clock or something.”

MIKE

”Yeah, and then I go ’looks like your time is up’ and the killer is so blown away with my awesome one-liner that he dies on the spot.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”I can’t disagree with that.”

MIKE

”Exactly. You know why you can’t?”

Violet shakes her head.

MIKE

”Because your time is up.”

He shoots her with a finger gun and then bends over laughing at his own joke. Violet does not laugh, but she does smile. He’s too busy laughing to see it. For just a moment, they’re both very different people.

Steps klick-klack in the background.

SCARLETT

”Violet Beauregarde, you had better not be tasting candy or god help me, I’ll...”

Violet quickly rises and straightens her back. She chews her gum faster.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”I’m here, Scarlett.”

Scarlett enters the waiting room. She sees Mike, cross legged with a computer in his lap. It’s Mike. We know how this goes by now.

SCARLETT

”Violet? Sidebar. Now.”

She grips Violet’s shoulder, hard, and pulls her to the other side of the waiting room screen.

Scarlett is not happy. She’s trying her best to hold this back, but it is not working.

SCARLETT

”When I said to socialize, I meant with someone _useful_.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”I know.”

SCARLETT

”Then follow that advice.”

The Beauregardes stand in silence.

SCARLETT

”The group is re-gathering. We are still on a tour, and that charming mister Wonka wants to continue it.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”How did it go?”

Scarlett clenches her jaw. Is it because of the conversation, or because Violet is bringing it up? You decide.

SCARLETT

(Bitter)

”It went. We’re heading back. Now.”

Cut to Mike, sitting on the other side of the screen, having overheard this conversation. He sighs, packs up his computer, and slips Rupert’s phone into a pocket in the computer bag.

He absentmindedly forms a finger gun again, puts it to his head, and fires. Afterwards, he blows the non-existent smoke off his finger and shakes it off. He tries smiling, and it comes out half-heartedly. He tries an impressed smirk, but his face looks wrong. Finally, he sets his jaw and returns to normal Mike mode - subtly angry at the world around him.

And then, he leaves.

**INT. Lab Central.**

The group has regathered as Willy hands the Frau back her phone. He turns to face the group, energy high.

WILLY WONKA

(To the Frau)

”That should do the trick. Try calling when you have the chance.”

(To the group)

”Well, that was the lab! I do hope you enjoyed yourselves.”

People nod.

Mike crosses his arms and squints at Rupert. Rupert does not notice.

Willy bounces on his heels.

WILLY WONKA

”Any questions? Any intriguing mechanisms? The only time for questions is right now!”

VERUCA

”How come the gobstopper room is locked off?”

WILLY WONKA

(Must’ve misheard)

”I’m sorry?”

VERUCA

”The door labeled GOBSTOPPERS in big letters. I was under the impression we were to see all aspects of your industrial-revolution wet dream.”

Willy tilts his head.

WILLY WONKA

”Oh, yes. Well, you can’t let just anyone enter the gobstopper room - in fact, it’s healthy to be locked out! If you could just waltz in there, they wouldn’t be gobstoppers, would they? They’d be gob-go-aheaders, and there’s no fun chewing one of those!”

Veruca nods. She exchanges a brief look with her father, who also subtly nods.

Willy turns around triumphantly as he speaks.

WILLY WONKA

”That’s it? That’s it. On with the tour!”

He pauses. Turns back, spinning on his heels, and smiles.

WILLY WONKA

”Unless... it would only be appropriate to unveil my very latest prototype candy, while we’re here.”

He half-skips-half-sidles up to a machine covered in a white sheet. When he grabs and pulls off the white sheet, we see the machine underneath. It’s your standard gum dispenser, except the ball is empty. Behind the dispenser is a sleek metal box, reaching up to Willy’s shoulders and just as wide.

WILLY WONKA

”Gum!”

Veruca rolls her eyes.

At waist level, however, she opens her phone camera. She then picks up the phone and holds it as if she were just scrolling through it, camera tilted just enough to show us the machine without looking like she’s actively filming.

VERUCA

(Sounding bored)

”Thrilling.”

She presses record.

WILLY WONKA

”But not just any gum, dear guests!”

He slams a red button on the dispenser. The metal box starts humming.

WILLY WONKA

”This gum contains all the nutrients and flavors of a full three-course meal. It’s pure innovation! No longer will we need to interrupt our lives to 'cook' and 'eat'!”

The metal box stops humming. A stick of gum drops into the dispenser and is ejected directly into Willy’s hand. He grabs it and holds it up in one swift motion.

WILLY WONKA

”This stick of gum can, theoretically, keep a person fed all day!”

Charlie and Joe exchange glances. This would be a game changer for their family if it were to be sold in stores. Charlie steps forward, about to ask to try the stick. He opens his mouth but is immediately interrupted by Scarlett.

SCARLETT

”Oh. This is perfect for you, Violet. A whole meal in a stick of gum. Diet-friendly, I hope.”

She walks up to Wonka, bringing Violet with her by scooping

WILLY WONKA

”You hope right!”

Frau Gloop looks mildly concerned.

FRAU

”I don’t see why this would be...”

(She moves her hand, trying to come up with the right word)

”Notwendig... necessary! Cooking is an expression of love, it’s not-”

SCARLETT

”God forbid your son misses out on some ’love’ every now and then.”

The Frau inhales. She says nothing. She’s a lover, not a fighter, and Scarlett is stooping low for punches she does not need to throw.

SCARLETT

”My Violet’s going to be the first to have a chewing gum meal! Go on, Violet.”

MIKE

”Wow. You find your daughter very _useful_ , don’t you-”

Norman immediately clasps a hand over his son’s mouth.

Scarlett gives the Teavees a warning glare. She then looks at Violet intently. Willy stretches his arm out towards Violet. He has to lean on Scarlett to reach all the way. Between two fingers, he’s holding the stick of gum.

Violet looks down at the gum.

She looks up at Willy and Scarlett, one leaning on the other, both encouraging in very different ways.

Violet takes out her gum and puts it behind her ear. She hesitates, then takes the stick.

VIOLET

”Is it really diet proof?”

WILLY WONKA

”Very much so. All the perks of a meal with none of the downsides.”

Violet swallows. She smiles thinly, then puts the stick in her mouth and starts chewing.

She chews for a few seconds.

Veruca adjusts her posture, paying close attention to what's going on.

JOE

”How is it?”

Violet blinks. For a second, she stops chewing.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum, quiet)

”It’s tomato soup.”

She swallows but there’s nothing there. Just gum. She keeps chewing.

Willy gives the group an entrepreneurial smile, a kind of ”told you so” mixed with a ”isn’t it amazing?”.

The Frau continues looking mildly concerned.

Violet paces a little bit. Turns ever so slightly.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum, quiet)

”It’s roast beef and baked-”

(Her voice cracks a little bit. She clears her throat.)

”Baked potato. Lots of butter.”

This is a girl who hasn’t eaten a full meal in very long. It’s overwhelming. She knows why she hasn’t eaten, she gets it and she agrees, but up until this point she hadn’t realized just how hungry she really was. Years of hunger reveal themselves, all at once. This is just chewing gum, though. Which is good, it’s fine, it’s easy, it won’t make her fatter and that means she’s fine and good and safe.

Despite this, as she’s chewing the gum and getting a full flavor profile, she wants nothing more than for it to be real food.

She twists her hands together to distract.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum, quiet)

”Blueberry pie with ice cream.”

Five fatal words.

Norman startles.

Veruca does a double take.

Charlie tries to wake himself up. This could be a hunger-based delusion.

Willy stops leaning on Scarlett’s shoulder and adjusts his candy red suit jacket.

Violet has started turning blue. It’s just a tint on her cheeks, but it’s spreading, a lovely shade of violet.

SCARLETT

”You’re turning violet.”

Violet blinks.

She’s still twisting her hands. One hand absentmindedly starts wandering up her arm, closing off her body language, when she feels her arm start to fill out her light blue hoodie. A hoodie that is intentionally two sizes too big.

Willy clears his throat.

WILLY WONKA

”Ah, right. Well, you all knew the risks, I explicitly warned you...”

Scarlett speaks but does not take her eyes off her daughter.

SCARLETT

(Through her teeth)

”What is happening to my Violet, Wonka?”

WILLY WONKA

”She’s inflating! Like a blueberry! Surprise!”

Scarlett slaps Willy hard across the face and rushes to her daughter, horrified.

SCARLETT

(Panicked)

”Spit it out! Spit it out, now!”

Violet startles, slowly growing more blue by the second, but obeys, spitting it out as fast as she can.

Veruca is still filming. Her shoulders are tense.

Willy fumbles with his suit jacket. He only has one hand to do so, nursing his slapped cheek with the other.

WILLY WONKA

(Idly)

”Where is it, where is it...”

Scarlett grips Violet by the shoulders. Violet stares up at her, scared for a multitude of reasons.

SCARLETT

”It would’ve been fine if you had held on for a few more hours. _You_ would still look fine if you had only held on for a few more hours, you stupid little loser!”

Joe looks like he wants to say something, and yet he doesn’t. He doesn’t even move. Instead, he looks to Willy, who is still fumbling.

WILLY WONKA

”I can reverse the process no problem if I just...”

SCARLETT

”What are they going to think? How are you going to explain yourself? You’ve ruined everything, every measly chance you had of being something-”

Charlie steps forward to interfere.

CHARLIE

(Trying to mediate)

”You encouraged her, miss Beauregarde, this-”

SCARLETT

(Angry, to Charlie)

”Don’t you dare tell me what I did and did not do-”

VIOLET

(Under her breath, not chewing gum)

”I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry...”

The Frau sneaks forward, coming from behind Charlie. She raises her hand politely as if she wants to say something.

Mike’s face is unmoving. His fists are clenched tight.

FRAU

”Kann ich... may I please...”

SCARLETT

(To the Frau)

”Get your _fat_ hand out of my sight. You’re in no place to criticize, you let your _circular_ son out of your sight for one second and he got himself lost.”

Veruca lowers her camera, still recording.

VERUCA

”In this house we exercise body positivity, Madame Bovary.”

Scarlett goes to say something mean, but realizes she’d be insulting Veruca Salt in front of her very influential father. She says nothing.

Instead, she herds Violet back, stepping between the crowd and Violet and turning to her daughter.

SCARLETT

(To Violet)

”We’ll fix this. There’s nothing a little food regulation won’t fix. We’re. Not. Slipping. Not here, not now.”

Norman puts a hand on his son’s shoulder. Mike shakes it off, annoyed. He looks at Wonka.

Wonka gets ahold of something in his coat pocket.

Mike’s eyes go wide.

MIKE

(Loud enough)

”Guys...”

VERUCA

(Bitch mode)

”Not now, Michael.”

MIKE

(Hostile)

”Suck it, Rick.”

VERUCA

”You really want to die on this hill? Really?”

CHARLIE

”Can we all please just calm down?”

FRAU

(Quietly)

”Du musst dir keine Sorgen machen, sie ist-”

SCARLETT

”You can be better than this. You _will_ be better than this? You know why?”

VIOLET

”I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I’m sorry...”

SCARLETT

(Forcefully)

”You know why?”

VIOLET

”Because nobody loves a loser.”

Scarlett smiles and nods, still visibly tense.

And then we hear the loud BANG of a gunshot.

In the background, the instrumental to _Colors_ by Halsey starts playing.

Scarlett stops nodding.

We see Scarlett like the rest of the group sees her, back turned. Blood starts spreading from a hole in her back, leaking red onto her bright blue shirt. It doesn't make quite the shade of violet Violet herself is, but it’s close.

Scarlett looks at her daughter. She has many feelings, but none of them are happy. This is not where Scarlett Beauregarde planned to die. This is not the last face she thought she’d ever see.

 _Colors_ enters the refrain, now with vocals.

We see Scarlett collapse to the floor from above. The camera zooms out. Blood starts leaking onto the concrete, forming a puddle that grows larger and larger by the second.

She doesn’t get last words.

We see a close-up of Violet. Cheeks slightly rounder, lilac staining her cheeks and face like some sort of alien blush, she just stares forward. Unblinking. Unmoving.

The episode cuts to black as the refrain ends.


	4. S1E4 - There's no knowing where we're going

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the tour isn't a regular tour anymore and Charlie forges an unlikely bond.
> 
> Previously on Candyman:  
> Charlie and Veruca hit it off. Mike realized the tour group wasn't alone in the factory. Frau Gloop connected her phone to the internal system. Violet almost got turned into a blueberry, and in the commotion, Scarlett was shot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for:  
> Guns, gunshot wounds, blood, loss of a parent, being hunted, an anxiety attack, fatphobia, flame throwers, repressed emotions, worrying about money, money troubles, and avoiding food on purpose.

**INT. Lab Central.**

Song playing in the background: _The Candy Man_ , as always.

Open on the same Violet close-up we ended on.

(Notes on Violet’s makeup: to ease the job for the production and makeup department, as well as to create our own memorable Blueberry Violet, this iteration of Violet isn’t completely violet. Instead, she has a blue-lilac tint to some parts of her skin, originating from the biggest blood veins and fading outward. Subtle, yet inhuman.)

(Notes on Violet’s body: to avoid controversy, show basic respect, and craft a compelling arc, we’ve cast a plus-sized actress to play Violet for the majority of the show. Earlier Violet scenes were filmed using a skinny stunt double.)

Violet stares forward. Unblinking. Unmoving. The camera pans around her, where the world is a slow motion chaos. Everyone has extreme reactions to Scarlett being shot, screaming or wincing or looking away, but any sound is completely drowned out by the show’s catchy theme.

And then, the world speeds up around her. _The Candy Man_ stops instantly.

WILLY WONKA

”Whoops!”

The group look to him in unison.

Willy is holding a gun. He looks at it and makes a surprised face, like ”wow, how did that get there”.

CHARLIE

(Panicking)

”Does anyone here have medical training? Anyone?”

Joe kneels by Scarlett and starts putting pressure on the gunshot wound. The Frau frantically roots through her bag, retrieving bandages and other everyday objects that are useful for mild inconveniences but not for getting shot.

Veruca automatically steps closer to her father, who is keeping his business facade strong and steady.

RUPERT

”Mister Wonka, you wouldn’t happen to have a hospital wing?”

Norman automatically steps closer to his son, who can’t stop staring at the gun.

NORMAN

”Do you have a license for that firearm?”

Willy comes to.

WILLY WONKA

”Oh, funny story. This is a special gun. Made for de-juicing. If it had hit Violet, the blueberry juices would’ve been drained and she’d be fine, but dear Scarlett didn’t have juices to take the blow. A modern day tragedy.”

Angle on the gun. It’s a normal gun.

RUPERT

”Tell me why I don’t believe you.”

WILLY WONKA

”This is a world of my creation, Rupert. I’m sorry to say that some of what you see will defy explanation.”

Joe tries to make a compress out of the bandages and his new scarf, but his hands are shaking.

Charlie steps aside to join the conversation. He is hanging on by a thread.

CHARLIE

(Panicked)

”You didn’t answer the question, mister Wonka- do you have a hospital wing?”

WILLY WONKA

”No, but I have a better idea!”

NORMAN

”A woman is dying, Wonka, this is no time for better ideas.”

WILLY WONKA

”Then come up with a better better idea.”

NORMAN

”Actual medical personell!”

WILLY WONKA

”And how are you going to get them here in time, Normal?”

This argument continues in the background.

Violet hasn’t moved since her mother fell. The Frau puts her coat around Violet and says something comforting, but the sound is muffled.

Veruca steps behind her father and moves her phone around, getting some quick angles of the scene. It’s still recording.

From the camera’s point of view, we see Violet, staring emptily into the air. She might as well be dead.

Mike looks at Charlie, who’s gotten jittery. He tries to give him a comforting look, but it really looks more like the :/ emoticon.

He looks at the fathers, arguing with Willy. Willy waves the gun around like it’s no big deal. The fathers both think it’s a big deal, but have very different ways of showing it.

WILLY WONKA

”It drains juice, I promise! If I shoot Violet-”

He aims his pistol at still target Violet Beauregarde. Rupert and Norman both protest. Rupert puts a hand out and lowers the gun.

Willy. Violet. A tour group growing smaller, slowly but surely.

MIKE

(Low, to Charlie)

”We’ve been keeping our eyes on the wrong person.”

Charlie looks at Mike, confused but terrified.

MIKE

(Louder)

”He did this on purpose.”

The fathers stop arguing. Joe and the Frau start paying attention. Veruca turns the camera to Mike.

MIKE

”All this time I’ve been thinking it was the Salts who were after us, and I’ve been ignoring the man who’s literally been here this whole time. It’s the plot twist of the god damn century. I can’t believe I didn’t see this coming.”

VERUCA

”What are you on about, Michael?”

Mike looks at her. Sees the phone. Considers this.

MIKE

”Are you recording?”

Veruca bites the inside of her cheek and subtly angles her phone in a more normal position.

VERUCA

(Lying, unblinking)

”No.”

MIKE

(Galaxy braining his way through a murder mystery parlor scene)

”They didn’t do crap to Augustus. They’re just spies who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

The Frau, hearing her son’s name, would be on the edge of her seat if she were less empathetic. Instead, she doesn’t know what to feel.

WILLY WONKA

(To Rupert, maliciously)

”Spies, huh?”

Rupert stands completely still.

Willy breathes in through his nose and smiles, the corners of his mouth oddly sharp. He caresses his gun.

WILLY WONKA

(Bitterly)

”Tell me, are you spying, Rupert?”

Rupert looks Willy in the eyes.

RUPERT

”Why would I?”

WILLY WONKA

”I can think of a multitude of reasons, my dear.”

Veruca looks to Charlie for... she doesn’t really know. Support? He meets her eye and does his best to give it. Neither of them move.

Rupert and Willy face each other. They’re standing close, the only thing between them half a meter of air and a gun. The tension is so thick, there’s a good chance Willy could fire the gun and the bullet would get stuck in the air.

Of course, that’s a hypothesis not worth testing.

Mike is the first to step up here.

MIKE

”This is all some sick game you’re playing. I bet you did something to Augustus, too. I bet you’ve packed this factory full of fun little ways for us to die.”

Willy instantly reverts to his more cheerful self.

WILLY WONKA

”You really should speak louder, I can’t seem to hear you.”

MIKE

”Have you been carrying the gun this whole time, or did you get it just for this? Why didn’t you wait? Why didn’t you reposition? If you were aiming for Violet and you knew the risks, why did you fire? Better yet, why did you bring the gum up in the first place?”

CHARLIE

(Hesitantly)

”He’s right.”

Rupert distances himself from Willy.

RUPERT

”Yes, Wonka, the young man unfortunately has a point.”

MIKE

”A point? What kind of gay- he just killed a bitch! Straight up no-scoped a broad! He’s a killer and he’s trapped us in a murder factory of his own creation that we have no idea how to navigate!”

Joe rises slowly from Scarlett.

JOE

”She’s hanging on. Lucky girl.”

RUPERT

”What do you have to say for yourself, Wonka?”

Veruca zooms in on Wonka with her camera. On camera, Wonka thinks, his face not betraying much of anything.

He sighs.

WILLY WONKA

”I didn’t want to do this now, but, since you insist.”

He smiles. Did he ever stop?

WILLY WONKA

”Everyone, I’d like you to meet my workers.”

The phone camera gets shaky.

 _War Pigs_ by Black Sabbath starts playing, just after the first 50 seconds of guitar intro.

We see Wonka center screen. Behind him, the screen separating the lab slides to the side. On the other side, we see a lineup of people. They wear black clothes from top to toe, concealing every bit of skin. To cover their faces, they wear squirrel masks in different colors.

Wonka raises his arms triumphantly and takes a deep bow. Behind him, the people in squirrel masks pull out various weaponry - knives, guns, flame throwers - and brandish them threateningly.

 _War Pigs_ continues in the background, but with a lower volume.

Mike’s eyes are open wide.

MIKE

(Very loudly)

”So we’re all running, right?”

He then proceeds to sprint out of the lab. Norman looks at the others, swallows, and goes after him.

JOE

(To the rest of the tour group)

”We do not have much of a choice, do we?”

And then he also takes off, surprisingly fast for an old man.

The Frau, seeing Violet stand paralyzed, grabs her arm and drags her away. After a few feet, Violet comes to a stumble and then a run alongside her.

Charlie sees his grandfather and follows his example. At the same time, the Salts leave, Rupert behind Veruca so that if they shoot, they hit him instead.

Willy doesn’t follow. Instead, he looks at the leader of the Squirrels, a tall man wearing a grey Squirrel mask and a leather jacket.

WILLY WONKA

”Well? What do I pay you for?”

The Squirrel Boss nods once, and then runs after the group, the rest of the Squirrels following, footsteps loud and violent on the concrete.

**INT. In the hallways.**

Song playing in the background: _War Pigs_ by Black Sabbath, continued.

Charlie, Veruca, and Rupert are hurrying down the hallways.

Around the corner, a handful of squirrel-masked thugs look around, debating where their prey could have gone off to.

Veruca is running in stilettos, and while she’s doing a remarkably good job, they’re starting hurt. To compensate, she takes smaller but faster steps, and, well,

She trips and falls. The sound echoes down the hallway.

Charlie and Rupert freeze in place. Charlie looks down the corridor to see if they’re being followed, if the sound alerted their hunters. He sees nothing.

Rupert quickly helps his daughter up.

RUPERT

(Quietly)

”Are you okay, angel?”

VERUCA

”No. For a multitude of reasons.”

CHARLIE

(Quietly)

”I think we’re fine. I... could you leave the shoes?”

Veruca sneers at him.

VERUCA

”No, I cannot ’leave the shoes’, thank you for asking. I can take them off and _carry_ _them_. Will that make you feel better?”

Charlie feels like an asshole. Veruca, standing up, takes off her heels one at a time by bending her leg up. Her jaw is clenched.

RUPERT

(Quietly)

”Sweetheart, I’m thinking we keep our voices down.”

Veruca sighs but for once, she doesn't protest.

Charlie looks down the corridor again.

Rounding the corner, we see the Squirrels. They round the corner at normal speed but then, seeing their prey up ahead, they start sprinting.

CHARLIE

”Run. Run!”

 _War Pigs_ fades out.

**INT. God, the hallways.**

Mike, Norman, and Joe, slow down from a sprint to take a breather. Joe puts a hand to the wall to steady himself, because a 70-year-old who spends all day in bed isn’t in the condition to run long distances. Mike is also exhausted, but slightly less so. Norman is fine, because he accompanies his wife to aerobics. Honestly, he goes to aerobics more than she does.

MIKE

(Quickly)

”Okay, so we set off the aggro and now they’re teaming. The only way to fight back is to team back, obviously. You don’t want to get ganked.”

Joe looks to Norman in confusion. Norman cannot speak for his son’s hobbies, much less communicate them wordlessly. They look back at Mike for answers.

Mike puts fingers to his temples.

MIKE

”Am I surrounded by idiots? They’re coming after us in groups, and we have to stick together, or they’ll just tag-team you when you’re alone.”

Norman and Joe turn to each other in that very specific way only middle aged men can do, as if they were discussing how well their favorite hockey teams are doing at the summer cookout.

NORMAN

”I’m, uh, sorry about him.”

Joe shrugs. It’s no problem.

JOE

”This is a familiar set of corridors right here.”

NORMAN

”Could you, ehm, find a way out?”

JOE

”There is no shame in trying, is there?”

They nod at the same time, as if striking a deal. Mike has no idea what the deal is, if there actually is one.

Norman sighs and puts a hand to his forehead.

NORMAN

(Resigned)

”We need the police.”

MIKE

(Annoyed)

”This is a dead zone, remember? D-E-A-D zone. Whatever Wonka said about having his own system, that’s not gonna be accessible to us, so the police is a no-go.”

Norman doesn’t know where he went wrong with his son, but right now, Mike causes him more stress than anxiety. He would scold the kid, but he knows he’d get scolded right back.

But Doris would tell him to man up if she were here. So he does.

NORMAN

”Let the adults think, Mike.”

Mike makes an "are you stupid?"-face.

MIKE

”Think of ways to die more easily? We literally can’t call the police. You get how that’s not an option, right?”

NORMAN

(Stern)

”And ’you get’ how complaining does nothing, ’right’? That was not a request. The grown-ups are talking.”

Mike sneers, miming a talking mouth with his right hand to drive home how stupid Norman sounds, but shuts up anyway.

Joe watches in silence. His family doesn’t argue, save for the occasional economy-fueled Charlie freakout. This means Joe is an expert at changing subjects.

JOE

”Frau Gloop did let young Wonka do something to her telephone. He put her in what he called the ’internal system’.”

Norman looks like he’s thinking. Mike’s eyes light up like Christmas morning. He raises his hand, but doesn’t say anything.

NORMAN

(Teacher voice)

”Yes, Mike?”

**INT. More hallways.**

The Frau leads Violet around a corner and stops, letting go of Violet’s wrist.

FRAU

”I’m so sorry for your loss, dear.”

As she says it, she looks at Violet, and her heart breaks for the poor girl.

Violet, shaking, tugs at the fabric of her hoodie in the way someone claustrophobic might push the walls of a broom closet. Trying to make more space before she completely stops functioning.

But just like how pushing a wall won’t change the foundation, her hoodie doesn’t become more spacious by tugging.

VIOLET

(Under her breath)

”No, no, no, no, no, no, no.”

The Frau, after quickly looking around to make sure they haven’t been followed, lightly touches the sides of Violet’s arms.

FRAU

(Calmly)

”Breathe.”

Violet breathes, quickly and lightly. The Frau drops her hands and readjusts her strategy.

FRAU

”With me. Breathe in. Eins, zwei, drei, vier, fünf, sechs, sieben, acht, neun, zehn.”

She repeats the process multiple times, breathing in and out, and after a couple rounds, Violet slows down and follows. The Frau’s voice dies down as Violet stops shaking.

FRAU

”Good. I’m proud of you, schatz. You’re fine. You’re safe.”

Violet scrunches her mouth together and shakes her head. The Frau looks around again, finds nothing, and then gives a careful smile.

FRAU

”Yes, you’re right, you’re right. But you will be. We get through this together, okay?”

Violet doesn’t nod. The Frau doesn’t mind.

She tries the handful of doors lining the hallway to see if any are unlocked.

Violet watches the woman like a prey animal hiding in the grass. Her mother’s words are fresh in her mind - not her last words, but every snide comment about the Gloops weights, every drop of disdain in her voice. Rationally, Violet knows size isn’t infectious, but attitudes are. God knows what the Frau will try to tell her. That ”her body is beautiful” and ”there’s no shame in being plus-sized”.

She crosses her arms. If she has to choose between Scarlett, who singlehandedly raised her, and some fat German woman, she’ll pick Scarlett every time.

The Frau pushes down the handle of the last door, and it clicks open. She turns to Violet and extends a hand.

FRAU

”They won’t find us in here, schatz. Come on.”

Violet doesn’t take her hand, but she does enter the room. This is temporary. This is all temporary.

**INT. In the hallways.**

Charlie and the Salts are running for their lives.

Behind them, the Squirrels are slowly but surely closing the distance, their boots thudding violently against the concrete floors.

Rupert rounds a corner. Charlie follows and looks behind him to make sure Veruca doesn’t fall behind. As she turns the corner, she crashes into him.

VERUCA

(Short of breath)

”They’re gonna catch us.”

She untangles herself from Charlie and absentmindedly fixes her hair. Charlie doesn’t quite know what to do with his hands, and equally absentmindedly puts one in his pocket.

Or, he attempts to put it in his pocket, but finds a small glass bottle instead.

RUPERT

”It’s not as if we can just disappear into thin air.”

The bottle reads ”Fizzy Lifting Drink” in loopy handwriting.

CHARLIE

”Except we can. Veruca, drink this.”

He thrusts the bottle towards Veruca. Veruca, exhausted, takes the bottle and cracks it open.

VERUCA

”This had better save my life, Bucket.”

She puts it to her lips and takes a big swig. Immediately, she starts floating upwards, putting a hand to the wall to stabilize herself.

Charlie takes the bottle back and holds it out towards Rupert.

CHARLIE

”You too, Mister Salt.”

Rupert meets Charlie’s eyes. The boy is earnest, offering the bottle to everyone else first, but Rupert didn’t become CEO by having a poor understanding of time management and team building.

RUPERT

”You first.”

Charlie nods and takes a swig. He hands it to Rupert, and then starts speeding his levitation up by putting his hands on the wall and dragging himself up. Soon, he’s farther up than Veruca, and holds out his hand to pull her up with him.

Veruca reluctantly lets go of the wall and takes his hand. Her other hand is occupied, firmly grasping her shoes.

VERUCA

”Dad, believe it or not, you’re not gonna be walking on air unless you drink. Dad!”

We see Rupert from above. He looks up, raising the bottle to his mouth, but he never gets the chance to drink. The Squirrels round the corner and aim their weapons at him.

Veruca presses herself up against the dark ceiling next to Charlie, gripping his lower arm as if she might be subject to the laws of gravity without it.

Back on the floor, we see Rupert raise his hands. The bottle is still open in his hand, and the last of the drink spills out onto his suit, darkening the fabric.

RUPERT

”Gentlemen.”

The Squirrel in the center steps forward. Unlike the others, he doesn’t carry a weapon, instead holding a small remote in his gloved hand.

The Squirrel Boss says nothing. Instead, he tilts his head curiously.

Rupert swallows and puts on his best business face.

RUPERT

(Bargaining)

”How much do you want in order to let us go? Name your price. Any price. I’m sure we can work out some sort of arrangement.”

The Squirrel Boss looks to his left, and then to his right, taking in the reactions of their fellow Squirrel masks. The Squirrels who are wielding guns raise them threateningly.

SQUIRREL BOSS

(Voice muffled by the mask)

”We’re not for sale. You’re not leaving.”

Rupert sets his jaw.

RUPERT

(Stern)

”No, I don’t think you quite understand what I’m offering you.”

The Squirrel Boss steps back in line.

SQUIRREL BOSS

”Sure. Keep telling us that.”

He raises his free hand and snaps his fingers.

Cut to Veruca and Charlie, pressed against the ceiling, unmoving. It's dark up in here. The lamps don't quite catch the corners.

And then, the ceiling is lit up bright orange. In the background, we hear the blazing sounds of flamethrowers, and, more horrifyingly, Rupert’s screams. Veruca quickly puts a hand over Charlie’s eyes. For a few seconds, she watches, paralyzed. Then, she looks away, pressing her cheek to the ceiling and pretending she’s anywhere else.

We linger on this shot for several seconds, screams continuing, the orange light flickering over the hiding teens. Finally, the screams end. Veruca and Charlie remain still, breathing as quietly as possible.

SQUIRREL BOSS (OFF SCREEN)

”They can’t have gotten far. Let’s go.”

**INT. The Luminous Lolly-Room.**

Song playing in the background: _bury a friend_ by Billie Eilish.

Start scene on a shot of a sign reading ”LUMINOUS LOLLIES FOR EATING IN BED AT NIGHT”, and then pan to the side, revealing Violet and the Frau. They are sitting on chairs in the back of the room, their surroundings lit up in dim bursts of pink, orange, or red, by the aforementioned Luminous Lollies. The Frau has a calming hand on Violet’s shoulder. Violet is looking straight ahead and counting the seconds until they can leave.

We see the door. It’s closed, but underneath, there’s a sliver of cold light from the outside.

FRAU

(Assuring)

”They are not coming for us. We will survive this. You are safe.”

In a case of dramatic irony, we hear several pairs of footsteps, and soon after, the cold light is obscured by shadows.

If Violet was quiet before, she’s deathly silent now. The Frau squeezes Violet’s shoulder in what she desperately hopes is a comforting gesture.

SQUIRREL MASK (THROUGH WALL)

”Check all the rooms?”

OTHER SQUIRREL MASK (THROUGH WALL)

”Got the keys?”

SQUIRREL MASK (THROUGH WALL)

”No.”

OTHER SQUIRREL MASK (THROUGH WALL)

”Try the handles, then. If it’s locked, it doesn’t make a difference.”

The Frau inhales. She doesn’t move.

As she watches the shadow obscuring the light, she knows this: She’s lost one child today. She’ll lose her temper long before she loses another one.

SQUIRREL MASK (THROUGH WALL)

”Never mind, I guess. We’re regrouping.”

OTHER SQUIRREL MASK (THROUGH WALL)

”Thank god. I am not in the mood for this.”

SQUIRREL MASK (THROUGH WALL)

”You said it.”

The shadow backs off. Footsteps move away.

The Frau exhales. _Bury a friend_ ends.

**INT. The Lab, later.**

We see Willy Wonka standing in a pool of blood.

Upon closer look, it’s not his own blood. We gather by context that it is the blood of Scarlett Beauregarde, half-dried on the floor, just below the gum machine. Scarlett is nowhere to be seen. The blood is un-smudged.

Reverse shot. The Squirrel Boss enters, flanked by his four lackeys. They do not have Rupert Salt with them.

WILLY WONKA

”I’d just love it if you had good news!”

The Squirrel Boss’ face is hidden. He shrugs.

SQUIRREL BOSS

”We got the business man. Couldn’t find the others.”

Willy sighs deeply. He gives the Squirrel Boss a very disappointed look.

SQUIRREL BOSS

”Hey, this is nothing to worry about. It’s what, four rotten kids and the weaker parents?”

Willy steps out of the pool of blood.

WILLY WONKA

(Demonstrating infinite patience)

”It’s not ’four rotten kids and the weaker parents’, it’s a hacker _with a computer_ , a spy _with potential video evidence_ , and the only man in the factory other than us who’s familiar with the layout. I don’t pay you to think, but maybe I should.”

The Squirrel Boss looks at his lackeys. The lackeys have backed off, reloading their guns and cleaning up their flame throwers.

Willy kneels and dips his bare finger in the puddle of blood, in the same way this candy maker might dip his finger in chocolate to make sure it’s the right consistency.

SQUIRREL BOSS

”So what do you want us to do?”

Willy rises and walks up to the Squirrel Boss, who adjusts his position slightly in response. Willy is shorter than the Squirrel Boss, and yet he's far more intimidating.

WILLY WONKA

(Commanding)

”Seal the factory.”

He boops the nose of the Squirrel Boss’ mask with his bloody finger, leaving a spot.

Then, he backs up and kneels in front of the puddle again, gathering up more blood.

WILLY WONKA

”Nobody goes in, nobody goes out. Not a whisper, either.”

He rises, smiling, right hand cupped and filled with blood. Once again, he approaches the Squirrel Boss.

WILLY WONKA

”This would be much, much easier if he had just gotten the Buckets when he had the chance, you know?”

The Squirrel Boss nods. Willy dips a clean finger in the cupped blood and begins painting the squirrel mask. We don’t see what he’s painting, camera remaining on Willy.

WILLY WONKA

”Where is he now?”

SQUIRREL BOSS

”Outside. He had other obligations.”

Willy’s painting finger slips.

WILLY WONKA

(Mocking glee)

”Whoops. My bad.”

(Serious)

”Other obligations, huh? Partying it up?”

The Squirrel Boss nods.

Willy lowers his hand, finished.

WILLY WONKA

”If you do your job - that is, catch these awful children - you will go far. Live in happiness, too.

Willy wipes his bloody hands off on the Squirrel Boss’ leather jacket.

WILLY WONKA

”But if you don’t? I’ll be honest, ’boss’. There are some things far worse than being complicit.”

Willy walks off, taking a small bow before walking through the puddle and leaving a set of red footprints behind him.

We finally see the Squirrel Boss. Written in blood across the forehead of his mask are the words ”BAD NUT”, slowly dripping down over the eyes.

**INT. In the hallways.**

Charlie and Veruca are back on the floor. In front of them, a sizable bit of floor is charred black, with the exception of an untouched blur in the center where Rupert Salt got in the way of the fire.

Except Rupert Salt isn’t there. There is no body. There are no ashes. There isn’t even a trace of the bottle he was holding.

We don’t see Veruca’s face, but we see Charlie look at her, extremely remorseful.

CHARLIE

”Hey, I’m... he’s fine, he’s gotta be fine, they’ve probably taken him somewhere, but god, I’m so sorry, I should’ve-”

Veruca, face still off-screen, holds up a finger to silence him.

VERUCA

”Don’t.”

CHARLIE

”I’m sorry, it’s just-”

We see Veruca’s face. She isn’t crying. She does look upset, but in a dry, angry way. Not like her father just died while she could do nothing but stay silent, but like she came home after a long day only to be served a microwave meal, still cold in the center.

Veruca doesn’t look at Charlie.

VERUCA

”Don’t pity me, don’t comfort me, and most importantly, don’t blame yourself. There was nothing we could have done, and that’s fine. I’m fine.”

Charlie fundamentally does not agree with that. He has several ideas of how he could have prevented this, and right now he wishes he had attempted even the worst of them.

CHARLIE

”This isn’t fine, Veruca, none of this is fine-”

Veruca looks at Charlie. Her eyes are hardened.

VERUCA

”Look at me. Am I crying? Am I screaming? Am I having a visceral reaction? Please, do tell me if I’m having a visceral reaction, because apparently, I’m incapable of registering my own bloody feelings.”

Charlie does not know what to say to that.

Veruca tidies herself up, correcting her dress and readjusting her jewelry, and lets some of the upset melt away. Her eyes are still hardened, but she’s turned it into determination.

VERUCA

”People leave. People always leave.”

She narrows her eyes at the charring, and then looks back at Charlie.

VERUCA

”And if people inevitably leave, I’m not going to interrupt my life to mourn the loss.”

Veruca steps away and kneels down on a piece of floor that is decidedly not charred. She pulls out her stilettos and examines the underside.

Charlie moves closer.

CHARLIE

”... You know it’s okay to be upset, right?”

VERUCA

(Dryly)

”Thank you for reminding me.”

Charlie crouches to be on her level.

CHARLIE

”Just... if you want to talk about it, then-”

Veruca looks up and smiles sharply.

VERUCA

”I do not.”

She holds up a stiletto in front of her and actually looks sad for a second.

VERUCA

(Whispering)

”I’m sorry.”

She clenches her jaw and looks away as she breaks the heel off the perfect designer stiletto, and then off the other. Both of them break with a satisfying plastic clicking sound. The heels come off cleanly into thin, blunt stakes.

Charlie watches.

Veruca rises and dusts off the heel stakes.

VERUCA

”Improvised weaponry. The greatest victory is, of course, that which requires no battle, but Sun Tzu was never hunted for sport in a chocolate factory.”

Charlie makes a move to take one. Veruca moves them away from him at the same speed.

VERUCA

”Nuh-uh-uh. Not so fast, Bucket. Are you an experienced fighter?”

CHARLIE

”No.”

VERUCA

”Then you’re not fighting.”

She paces, testing the stakes against her fingers as if trying to figure out exactly how much force it would take for them to do actual damage.

Charlie, slightly stunned by being told he can’t fight, processes it and then follows her, trying to make sense of the implications one point at a time.

CHARLIE

”I- are you an experienced fighter?”

Veruca spins around on her heel and smirks, just the right amount of condescending.

VERUCA

”I don’t blame you for not instantly assuming this, Bucket, but yes, actually. Over the course of my life, I have taken five different martial arts. Top-tier instructors, best money could buy, several years at a time.”

Charlie tries to process this.

Veruca nods.

VERUCA

”Mhm. Let that sink in.”

See, Charlie isn’t taking this bad because he wants to fight. Charlie is not a fighter. He’s lived in starvation for most of his life. Though his actor has muscles enough to make the audience follow him on Instagram, the character of Charlie Bucket would never be able to get enough nourishment to play sports, much less hold his own in a fight.

No, Charlie cannot imagine a scenario in which he’s standing on the side lines, useless. When he finally figures out what to say, he sounds desperate.

CHARLIE

”At least let me try. Four arms are better than two!”

Veruca furrows her brow.

VERUCA

”See, I don’t agree with that.”

Charlie is frustrated.

CHARLIE

”I can’t just stand around doing nothing!”

VERUCA

”So instead of ’standing around doing nothing’, you should throw yourself into a situation you’re not capable of handling?”

”Yes. Yes, exactly like that” Charlie thinks but doesn’t say. She’s right. His family is completely dependent on the paper route. All it would take is a broken leg, a second degree burn in the wrong place, and suddenly the soup is just warm water.

Veruca’s face turns softer.

VERUCA

”You don’t have to earn the right to live. It’s not your fault we’re in this position, it’s Wonka’s. If anything, he’s the one who should be doing the earning.”

Charlie doesn’t look at her.

VERUCA

”And you’re not doing nothing. Come here.”

She slides her white mink coat off. When Charlie is close enough, she puts it around his shoulders.

VERUCA

(Serious)

”First of all, you’re guarding this coat, and you’re guarding it with your life. If a single substance gets in this fur, I will go nuts. This needs to be immaculate. Spotless. When we get out of here, I want that coat to look closet-fresh. Can you do that for me?”

CHARLIE

”Yes-”

Charlie nods, and is temporarily knocked off-balance as Veruca grabs the fluff of the collar and pulls him a step closer.

Charlie flushes and doesn’t know where to look. Veruca adjusts his collar without looking up at his face, smiling slightly when she gets it just right. She then fishes a phone out of the left coat pocket.

VERUCA

”Second of all, and also important: this phone has footage of Willard Wonka the second shooting a woman. This cannot get into enemy hands. At the first sight of altercation, you run. Do we have a plan?”

They do.

**INT. The Luminous Lolly-Room.**

We see the door from the inside. Dark, but dimly lit by the lollies. As the door slowly opens, we hear Joe speak.

JOE

”Ah, yes. Thirty years ago, this would have been a storage cabinet.”

The door opens. On the other side is Joe, flanked by the Teavees, who don the same sceptical facial expression as they see that this room is, in fact, not a storage cabinet.

MIKE

”And thirty years ago, you also stopped reading signs?”

Reverse shot. In the far back of the room, the Frau rises from the table, relieved to see that the visitors aren't out for blood.

FRAU

”Herr Bucket!”

Joe smiles and heads into the room, meeting the Frau halfway. Norman follows. Mike also follows, looking at the lollies like they’re something from another planet. He pokes one and is absolutely flabbergasted by the fact that it doesn’t explode.

The adults are exchanging pleasantries about being alive, but the adults are not the focus of the scene. We continue to follow Mike making his way through the room, equal parts exploring and sneaking. At some point, he takes a red lolly and swings it like a lightsaber.

Finally, he reaches the back of the room. Violet stares ahead, dead-eyed, and Mike waves a hand in front of her eyes. He gets no reaction.

MIKE

”Ah. You’re AFK.”

Violet stirs and blinks, perhaps brought back from the brink of disassociation by Mike’s stupid stupid gamer slang.

VIOLET

(Unenthusiastically)

”I’m alive.”

MIKE

”Cool.”

He nods. Violet says nothing. Mike isn’t making things worse, but he sure isn’t making them better, either.

MIKE

”So remember what I said about slasher movies?”

VIOLET

”I think I hate slashers now, actually.”

MIKE

”Rude.”

VIOLET

”So when are you going to suit up and take down everyone single handedly? How is that working out?”

MIKE

”I need a gun first, and then I’ll be back on track.”

VIOLET

”Find that classic candy making gun. You, know, the standard chocolate factory equipment.”

MIKE

”Wonka would.”

Wait, Mike realizes. Willy actually has a gun. Bad comment.

MIKE

”I mean, uh- damn, I did not mean to say that. My bad. My whoopsie. Big oof. Spamming F for respects over here.”

Violet wishes she had gum so she’d have a valid reason not to say respond.

Luckily, the day is saved by Norman, who calls Mike over. Mike zooms over to him and is immediately handed the Frau’s phone.

NORMAN

”Take a look at the system.”

Mike turns on the phone. Her lock screen is a picture of Augustus and Herr Gloop arm wrestling. Augustus is cheating by giving his arm extra support, but is losing anyway. Though he looks completely exhausted, he has a big smile. Herr Gloop is smiling, too, although it’s barely visible.

Norman turns back to the adults.

NORMAN

”We need to keep going.”

FRAU

”If we go out there, they’ll nab us!”

JOE

”My dear Frau, if this is the room I think it is, the delivery bay will be nearby. If we go there, there will be garage doors. Doors we can escape through.”

The Frau looks over her shoulder at Violet.

Violet looks indifferent. She succeeds at it, but the Frau knows better than to fall for it. Whether Violet cares or not, she can’t stay in the factory. It will break her.

But leaving means abandoning Augustus. Augustus is smiling on the lock screen despite the exhaustion. He just wanted to try. It didn’t matter whether he won, it just mattered that they were there.

Mike shakes the phone in front of the Frau’s face, snapping her out of it.

MIKE

”Passcode. I need a passcode.”

The Frau types it in. It’s Augustus’ birthday. She can’t leave. Surrendering her only child to this _beschissen_ factory is not an option.

FRAU

”Augustus is still here. The Salts are here. Your grandchild is also here somewhere, Herr Bucket. We cannot.”

NORMAN

”If we leave, we can get the proper authorities. People who are more fit to protect them than we are. We, ehm, need to focus on the people we know we can save first.”

The Frau is horrified.

Joe pats the Frau’s shoulder.

JOE

”Charlie is a smart kid. Resourceful. He will make it through this, and so will Augustus. I’m sure of it.”

**INT. Even more hallways.**

Veruca and Charlie are creeping down a hallway. Veruca walks first, wielding her improvised stakes. Charlie follows shortly behind her, hand firmly in the pocket where the phone is.

Veruca looks over her shoulder to make sure nobody’s following them, and then switches her attention to Charlie.

VERUCA

(Quietly)

”So this was the best place on earth when you were a kid?”

She gestures around, both to show off the dark hallways and to indicate the situation. Charlie nods like it’s something to be deeply ashamed of.

Though the nod is meant to be joking, Charlie has an ever-growing list of reasons of why liking this factory was stupid. He’s not going to list them off. If there’s anything they don’t need, it’s a mood killer.

CHARLIE

(Quietly)

”Yeah. I used to build whole models of this place, actually.”

Veruca does the thing where she walks backwards while having a conversation.

VERUCA

”Oh, please tell.”

CHARLIE

”Okay, so: when I was a kid, my dad worked at this toothpaste factory in a neighboring town. His job was to screw on the lids, and sometimes there would be these messed up lids. Like, unusable. Bound for the trash.”

Veruca nods for him to continue. Charlie was not expecting to tell this whole story, but when Veruca nods, her hair falls into her face and she has to toss her head to get it out of the way, and god, Veruca’s even more beautiful when her hair is a mess.

CHARLIE

”But instead, dad would sneak them out and give them to me. Those were my building blocks. And what did I want to build? Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, obviously.”

Veruca grins.

VERUCA

(Sarcastically)

”Obviously. What’s not to love?”

She mimes stabbing herself in the throat with her stakes to make a point, makes a goofy death face, and then goes back to normal.

CHARLIE

”If you think about it, this is just hide and seek with extra rules. I did love a good game of hide and seek when I was a child.”

VERUCA

”In Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, they tag you so hard your body is obliterated on a molecular level.”

She remembers, and her face falls. Silence also falls. Veruca turns around and checks the corridor ahead for Squirrel Masks. They walk on in silence.

After a while, she speaks again.

VERUCA

”So you built a model?”

(Teasingly)

”Did it have a murder maze?”

CHARLIE

(Joking disappointment)

”Damn, missed opportunity.”

(Normal voice)

”I built several models, actually. The more lids I got, the more detailed they became. As in, nooks and crannies-levels of detail. We didn’t have glue, so when my parents were home, they’d melt the edges with a lighter.”

VERUCA

”Wow. You must be pretty familiar with the exterior, then.”

CHARLIE

”Yeah. The biggest model was supposed to be a perfect replica, and it took months at a time to get lids in the right shapes. It was the size of our television set.”

Veruca, amused, looks over her shoulder to ask a question.

VERUCA

”How long did it take to finish it?”

Charlie pauses. He hadn’t thought this far ahead, and is now realizing that actually, this story is also a mood killer. Does he tell her? Is this a thing he can just say? Does he lie?

He doesn’t lie.

CHARLIE

”Oh, I. Never finished it. Dad got laid off about halfway through.”

His voice trails off at the end, but Veruca catches it anyway. She considers looking over her shoulder again, to comfort, maybe, but decides against it and continues looking ahead.

VERUCA

”That sucks.”

Charlie, on the other hand, does look over his shoulder, because it feels weird to look at Veruca during this conversation. Even if she can’t see him.

CHARLIE

”We’re coping- we coped with it, I mean. We coped with it. An unfinished model isn’t the end of the world.”

Okay, Veruca can’t keep doing this.

She stops and turns around, crossing her arms and tilting her head. She’s concerned, and it shows.

VERUCA

”After establishing that you don’t have to tell me anything you’re not comfortable with: Charlie, did your father ever get a new job?”

Charlie pauses again. He still can’t look at Veruca.

He wants to tell her. Not because he thinks she’ll understand - he’s acutely aware that Veruca’s had things served on a silver platter so long, she might not understand the concept of other platters - but because he thinks she’ll listen anyway. Stupid as it may be, he doesn’t think she’ll go bitch mode on him for talking about his problems.

But he doesn’t know good will come of that, either.

CHARLIE

”I don’t want to talk about it.”

Veruca nods. She respects this response.

They keep walking.

VERUCA

(On a lighter note)

”So is the world ending yet?”

CHARLIE

(Matching her tone, thankful for the change of pace)

”If I were alone in here, maybe.”

Veruca smiles, and then stops, furrowing her brow. Ahead of them, the corridor turns to the right. In the background, we hear the echo of footsteps.

She leans against the wall and gestures for Charlie to do the same. He obliges. Veruca readies her stakes.

VERUCA

”I don’t think we are.”

**INT. Production Walkway.**

The Chocolate Ship Cookie is drifting down the chocolate canal.

At the helm, the Squirrel Boss stands, blood dried and smudged across his mask. In front of him, the rest of the Squirrel Masks sit, adjusting their boots or watching the tunnel walls pass.

A thug in a purple mask adjusts his position to adress the Squirrel Boss.

PURPLE SQUIRREL

”Do we really want this?”

SQUIRREL BOSS

”Nobody will ever know.”

The Purple Squirrel looks down.

PURPLE SQUIRREL

”It just doesn’t feel right, is all.”

SQUIRREL BOSS

(Harshly)

”Would you rather go back to barely scraping by? Peddling street drugs at Loompaland just to afford a drink at the end of the day?”

The Purple Squirrel shakes his head. The Squirrel Boss nods.

From a distance, we see Chocolate Ship Cookie drift down the canal and disappear into the darkness.

**INT. Even more hallways.**

The larger group walks down yet another hallway, coming up on a corner. The Frau has a careful arm around Violet. Mike listens intently for any sign of trouble. Joe is trying to remember the layout, motioning left or right with his hands to help remember.

Norman, walking at the front of the group, rounds the corner and is immediately grabbed by the arm by Veruca Salt. Without really thinking about who she's attacking, she guides the arm backwards and then pushes it down, twisting it. Norman follows, forced to the ground.

Mike instinctively goes for the attacker and is jabbed in the throat by a stake. Not hard enough to puncture, but hard enough to stop him in his tracks.

Veruca frowns.

VERUCA

(Yelling back)

”It’s just the others.”

We hear footsteps quickly approaching.

Mike recovers.

MIKE

(Hoarse)

”What in the actual god damn hell, Rick?”

VERUCA

(Nonchalant)

”I thought you were thugs.”

MIKE

”You KO’d my father!”

Norman is lying on the floor, glasses crooked, staring at the ceiling as if he’s coming to terms with his mortality. He is the least thuglike a person could be.

Charlie sprints up and holds arms between Veruca and Mike, just in case.

CHARLIE

”Please don’t fight.”

Joe relaxes and goes to embrace his grandson. Charlie hugs him back, as hard as he can.

JOE

”I knew you would be okay, my boy.”

CHARLIE

”Where are we going?”

JOE

”The delivery bay. It will have doors.”

Veruca watches, very aware that no-one in this room is particularly relieved that she’s also made it through alive. When Charlie notices her looking, she immediately looks away, focusing on Violet instead.

VERUCA

(Making conversation)

”You’re very... blue.”

VIOLET

(Being conversed with)

”Yes.”

VERUCA

(Trying to lift the mood)

”At least it’s your colour?”

VIOLET

(Does not want to be reminded)

”Thanks.”

Mike helps Norman up, but in a rough way. Norman adjusts his glasses and counts heads. Someone is missing.

NORMAN

”Ehm, where’s Mister Salt?”

Veruca stiffens. Charlie steps in.

CHARLIE

”The Squirrel people have flame throwers. We don’t want to talk about it.”

Norman respects this. He doesn’t want to talk about it either.

Mike decides that maybe, just maybe, he shouldn’t joke about this being a slasher film anymore.

MIKE

”Anyway! I think I’ve got the system figured out here, the code is kinda screwed up and you have to put your settings in a very specific way but! 911! Let’s call 911!”

Half the tour group nods.

Mike types in the number. The phone rings just a little too long before someone picks up.

911 CALL-TAKER (OVER THE PHONE)

”911, what’s your emergency?”

MIKE

”God, yes, it worked! Hi, yes. We’re in Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory - we’re the guests, you’ve seen us on tv - and anyway he’s trying to kill us? He shot a woman. He has a bunch of masked thugs patrolling the hallways with... what was it?”

VERUCA

”Flame throwers.”

MIKE

(Speeding up)

”Flame throwers. This god damn madman has flame throwers. Another one of our parents was apparently flame throwered to death? Augustus has straight up gone missing! Violet almost turned into a blueberry! We need help!”

He waits for the call-taker to respond. A few seconds pass.

MIKE

”Hello? Hello?”

911 CALL-TAKER (OVER THE PHONE)

”Where in the factory are you?”

CHARLIE

(Low)

”If the entrance is there and we’re heading to the big parking lot...”

(Loud enough for the call-taker to hear)

”East wing, close to the delivery port.”

Another few seconds pass. We hear things shuffling around through the phone, like pens and paper.

911 CALL-TAKER (OVER THE PHONE)

(Enthusiastically)

”Thank you, Charlie.”

The tour group freezes.

**INT. A tower in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

Standing in the same position he did at the end of episode one, wearing that same pinstripe suit, we see Willy Wonka, holding an old fashioned stationary phone to his ear. He’s gleeful at having taken them off-guard.

**INT. Even more hallways.**

The group looks at Charlie. Charlie can’t believe he just said that. Violet is shaking, and the Frau tries to comfort her. Norman is struggling to keep composure. Joe handles this the best, but best doesn’t mean necessarily mean well. Mike takes a deep breath and then starts swearing as loudly and violently as a teenage gamer possibly can. We cut away before he can finish even one network-prohibited swear.

**INT. A tower in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

WILLY WONKA

”Watch your mouth, Mike, this is a family friendly tour.”

MIKE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Suck my god damn-”

Willy puts a hand over the receiver.

WILLY WONKA

”As I was saying, I hope you’re enjoying my staff. Excellent workers. The kids might even say they’re... on fire.”

**INT. Even more hallways.**

Veruca sets her jaw.

Joe carefully takes the phone out of Mike’s hand. Mike has finished his swearing session and is now just punching and kicking the air haphazardly.

JOE

”Why are you doing this?”

**INT. A tower in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

Willy paces the room.

WILLY WONKA

”I have my reasons, Joe.”

He sits down in a spinning chair and rocks from side to side. He cannot spin the whole way around because of the phone cord, but if he could, he would.

**INT. Even more hallways.**

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE PHONE)

”So. The east wing, you say?”

Joe hangs up.

Charlie looks like he’s going to cry.

CHARLIE

(Panicking)

”I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize, I shouldn’t have said-”

MIKE

(Angry)

”Well, it’s good that you’re learning from your mistakes.”

VERUCA

”Oh, like you immediately knew, Michael.”

MIKE

(Bitter)

”It was on the tip of my tongue.”

VERUCA

(Venomous)

”But it wasn’t out in the open, was it? Conceit spoils the finest genius. That’s Louisa May Alcott, smartass.”

Joe waves his hands for them to calm down. Mike is preparing a scathing insult when Veruca, to his surprise, steps off and turns her attention to Joe. She gives Charlie an assuring nod. Charlie doesn’t feel better, but he appreciates it.

JOE

”We have to continue. If we hurry, we can get out before they find us.”

The Frau hesitates, but doesn’t speak up.

**INT. A tower in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

Willy has been hung up on.

He puts the phone to his ear one last time, just to make sure. It’s dead silent, and he puts it back on the base.

 _Razzmatazz_ by I Don’t Know How But They Found Me fades in.

Willy spins a couple times in his chair before putting a foot to the floor. The chair comes to a halt. He leans back, sighs, and runs his hands over his face, feeling every inch for wrinkles. After finding none, he rises, grabs a paper from next to the phone, and leaves.

**INT. Old delivery bay.**

_Razzmatazz_ continues from the chorus.

The group enters an storage room. It’s not quite the size of a warehouse, but it’s close. Tall metal shelves fill the room in neat lines. Stacks of boxes say things like ”SCRUMDIDDLYUMPTIOUS” and ”IF YOU DON’T KNOW, YOU DON’T NEED TO” in big red letters. On one wall, two large garage doors are lowered.

The group hurries to the doors. Joe nods. This is it.

Norman pushes a button on the side of the wall.

We see the group lined up in front of the garage door, side by side. Slowly, the garage door opens. We can’t see what’s on the other side, but whatever it is, it’s dark.

_”Cast all your spells, and there you have...”_

Charlie stares in disbelief.

Mike realizes just how serious the situation actually is.

Violet squeezes her arm.

The Frau doesn’t know if she’s relieved or not.

Norman adjusts his glasses, as if it will change what he’s looking at.

Veruca doesn’t know where to go from here.

Joe realizes that a lot can change in thirty years.

_”That good old fashioned razzmatazz.”_

They are lined up in front of the garage door. As the door rises above their heads, we see the other side. It’s bricked off. There is no way out.

 _Razzmatazz_ ends.

**INT. Old delivery bay. Later.**

People have dispersed, but Charlie, Joe, and Norman remain by the garage door. Charlie has found an old hammer and is hammering the brick wall. It’s a small hammer, wielded by a teen with minimal muscle mass, trying to tear down a strongly built brick wall. It does nothing but tire him out.

NORMAN

”Ehm, you said we’d be able to escape.”

JOE

(Despondent)

”I was wrong.”

Charlie brings down the hammer on the wall in his hardest slam yet. It echoes through the room, but doesn't do more than damage the paint.

NORMAN

”What are we supposed to do now? Where do we go?”

Joe looks at Charlie. Even when he’s failed the kid, Charlie keeps fighting.

JOE

”Charlie, my boy, calm down.”

CHARLIE

(Putting all his energy towards hammering the wall)

”I can’t just sit around and wait for him to get us.”

JOE

”You do not have to do this. He is not coming here.”

CHARLIE

(Panting)

”How do you know that? How do you know he isn’t on his way? This isn’t a lie-in-bed-all-day-type of situation, grandpa Joe. I know you have no problem sitting around and waiting, but I do.”

When Georgina says Charlie works too hard, she’s right. Joe always agrees with her. He wishes he was with her now.

He takes the hammer from Charlie.

JOE

”You only know the factory from the outside. If the wall is bricked over, it cannot be the delivery bay you were thinking of. He cannot find us here. You have not given him our correct location.”

Charlie looks at his grandfather, and then strains his eyes, refusing to cry.

Norman discreetly leaves, now knowing they have time to rest.

CHARLIE

(Broken voice)

”If we aren’t in the main delivery bay, he’ll check the others. He’ll know. We need to get out. It’s just on the other side of this wall, freedom is just on the other side, I can’t just-”

Joe hugs his grandchild.

JOE

”One thing at a time, my boy.”

**INT. Old delivery bay bathroom.**

Song playing in the background: _Water_ by Jack Garratt.

Violet stands in front of a mirror for the first time since the three-course gum. She hates what she sees.

She twists and turns, pulling her hoodie over her head. The tank top she has underneath is stretched tight around her body. The blue isn’t just on her face, but all over her. Her inner arms are a vivid lilac that blurs into her skin.

Violet holds her arm under the tap and turns on the water. The water comes away clear, not affected by the color. She scrubs her arm with her hand, hard and exact, but again, nothing happens. It’s not like trying to wash off paint, but like washing off pigment. It isn’t going to happen.

She keeps going, though, drying her arm off and scrubbing in intervals until her skin takes on an irritated magenta.

In the midst of this, there’s a knock at the door. _Water_ fades out.

VERUCA (BEHIND THE DOOR)

”We’re gathering.”

Violet turns off the tap.

VIOLET

”I’ll be right there.”

It’s probably all over her body, but Violet doesn’t want to find out. She pulls the hoodie back on.

On the other side of the door, we see Veruca lean her back against the wall and twist her hair.

VERUCA

”And like... it’s been a really bad day.”

(Genuinely)

”Are you okay? I don’t see why you would be, but are you coping?”

For Veruca, this stiff way of reaching out is just as much about measuring what she herself is supposed to feel about losing a parent as it is about checking up on Violet.

Back in the bathroom, Violet hesitates before answering.

VIOLET

”I’m okay.”

Because she will be. If she just skips enough meals, she will be. This is temporary.

**INT. Old delivery bay.**

Between two tall sets of shelves, everyone is gathered, sitting on the floor in a circle. Violet arrives. Veruca scoots closer to Charlie to make room for her.

Mike has climbed between two boxes on the shelves and is thus sitting outside of the circle. He shrugs.

MIKE

”So I guess we’re just stuck here? Is that what’s up?”

Norman nods. Mike sighs very deeply.

MIKE

(Sarcastically)

”At least we can have a nice filling meal of chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate.”

Frau Gloop opens her handbag. She fishes out a string of small sausages lying in a plastic bag and a roll of Digestive Crackers labeled in German. Mike whistles.

MIKE

”Dang, Frau G, did you smuggle these through airport security?”

The Frau says nothing, but she gives him a wink and opens the Digestive roll. She holds it out to Mike, who takes a couple, and then places it in the middle of the circle.

Charlie has his back against one of the shelves. When he goes to lean forward and take a cracker, he places his arm to the floor as support and winces.

Veruca quickly grabs the roll for him.

VERUCA

(Teasingly)

”Maybe next time, don’t beat up a wall for fifteen minutes?”

CHARLIE

(Tired)

”Next time, please tell me to stop.”

VERUCA

”Just warn me whenever you plan on doing a reverse-Cask of Amontillado, and I’ll be sure to be there.”

She bumps his shoulder very lightly.

Mike watches them as he eats his crackers.

The roll gets passed around. Frau Gloop starts cutting the sausages loose with a very small pair of scissors she also had in her handbag.

She hands a couple sausages to Violet. Violet shakes her head and doesn’t take them.

VIOLET

”No. The gum really was a filling meal. I’m not hungry, thank you.”

FRAU

”Schatz, you should still eat.”

VIOLET

”Don’t waste food on me. I’ll eat when I get hungry.”

The Frau frowns, but passes the sausage to Veruca instead, who gingerly takes and holds it between two fingers.

Violet looks at the sausage and swallows in discomfort.

NORMAN

”Are these, ehm, pre-cooked?”

The Frau nods.

FRAU

”Yes. It is not a convenient snack if you have to cook it every time.”

Norman thinks about the concept of the Frau carrying around pre-cooked sausages in her handbag at all times, but does not comment on it.

NORMAN

”Anyway, ehm, we should rest. Try again when we have more energy. It’s been a long day.”

Charlie wants to say something, probably about not wanting to stand by, but Joe gives him a look. It’s fine to rest. Heneeds it. Everyone needs it.

JOE

”Yes. I am absolutely positive we will be out of here tomorrow. I am sure of it.”


	5. S1E5 - What could possibly go wrong?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which tensions are high and Charlie is honest.
> 
> Previously on Candyman: Charlie was recruited by the FBI. Willy Wonka shot Scarlett and turned out to be an all around bad guy. The group escaped to an old warehouse, but Rupert got torched on the way there. The Frau took it upon herself to take care of Violet. Mike and Charlie were partners in uncovering crime for a moment, but then Charlie and Veruca ended up running from Wonka's goons together and got closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for:  
> Violet develops an eating disorder by intentionally starving herself so there's that to look out for, fatphobia, Mike exhibits some incel tendencies in one scene, drug mentions, homophobic language, toxic masculinity, internalized homophobia, feelings about loss, money troubles, repressed emotions, and implied vomiting off screen.

**EXT. The FBI’s temporary office, morning.**

We see a sleek black car parked in front of a seemingly regular terraced house. Snow covers the roof. A paper boy rides past and throws a newspaper at the door. It misses and lands in a snow drift on the lawn.

Closer, from ankle-level, we see the door open. A pair of leather shoes and khaki pants walk out.

In the snow, the newspaper lies. The first page flickers in the wind, but remains unturned. The headline reads ”STILL NO MOVEMENTS FROM CHOCOLATE FACTORY IN THREE DAYS”.

And then, a hand picks up the newspaper.

**INT. The FBI’s temporary office, morning.**

Agent Wilkinson enters, paper in hand. The living room of this house has been refurnished into a makeshift office. Various FBI-looking equipment is placed on the counter of an open kitchen, next to a coffee machine that has just finished brewing. In the middle of the room, there’s a large table covered in documents that are probably important, but we don’t know what for.

Wilkinson places the paper on the counter and pours himself a cup of coffee.

Agent Glockenberry, a middle-aged middle eastern woman, comes into frame from within the kitchen and looks over newspaper.

GLOCKENBERRY

”At least the press is having a field day.”

Wilkinson hmmm-s in response and takes a big swig of coffee. Glockenberry flips through the paper.

GLOCKENBERRY

”This paper speculates Wonka’s having a hard time deciding about the special price. Picking a winner. No idea what the price could be, though.”

Wilkinson shakes his head at the paper.

WILKINSON

”Whatever Wonka’s M.O, three days is extraneous unless something is... off.”

Glockenberry closes and rolls up the newspaper, rapping it in her hand a couple times.

GLOCKENBERRY

”Let us just hope his visitors are alright.”

Wilkinson downs the rest of his cup in one swoop and perks up. He takes off his sunglasses and hangs them on the collar of his shirt.

WILKINSON

”Let’s get to it.”

Glockenberry tosses the paper in the trash, which already holds several equally speculative newspapers. It lands next to an older one, also rolled up. We cannot read the headline, but the paper is just wide enough to show us the picture on the cover, a shot of Charlie Bucket smiling hesitantly for the camera. Zoom in on the portrait until it could be a close-up, and then cut to:

**INT. An old forklift in the old delivery bay.**

Charlie’s head fills the same space as just occupied by his portrait, but instead of smiling, he looks frustrated.

Pull out, and we see he is standing in front of an old bright blue forklift. Norman stands at the back, surveying the engine. Veruca sits in the passenger seat, on her phone.

CHARLIE

”And there’s nothing you can do?”

Norman looks up from the engine.

NORMAN

”Engines are, ehm, far out of my range.”

CHARLIE

”But you can get it working in theory, right?”

Veruca, still on her phone, smiles at Charlie’s insistence.

NORMAN

”In theory, ehm, maybe. This is not an instant fix, though. Be patient.”

Charlie understands this.

Norman corrects his glasses.

NORMAN

”What, um, what are you using it for?”

Veruca looks up and tries not to look amused.

VERUCA

”He’s going to run it through the wall.”

Norman blinks, shakes his head, and sighs, a man so often resigned to going along with the whims of ridiculous teens. The viewer gets the impression this isn’t the first plan Charlie’s come up with to tear the wall down.

Veruca slips out of the forklift and hooks her arm around Charlie’s so he’ll walk with her. Camera walks with them as they walk away from the forklift.

In the last three days, Charlie and Veruca have gotten closer. You can see it in how they move, leaning towards the other, and you can hear it in how they speak, bouncing off each other.

VERUCA

(Banter)

”Well, that’s one way to reverse-Cask of Amontillado.”

CHARLIE

(Banter)

”How’s your escape plan coming, master strategist?”

VERUCA

(Banter)

”Oh, shut up.”

She bumps his shoulder with her shoulder, arms still hooked together. Charlie almost trips from the movement, but Veruca catches him with her free hand, gripping his shirt to keep him from falling. They look at each other, and it’s not weird, but it’s not not-weird either. Veruca lets go. Charlie straightens out his shirt. They keep walking.

VERUCA

”It’s coming along.”

CHARLIE

”Good. That’s good.”

**INT. Old delivery bay, somewhere central yet secluded.**

The Frau has laid out an improvised picnic on the concrete floor, consisting of leftover handbag snacks and old chocolate bars. Violet sits with her, but we get the sense that she’d rather not.

The Frau holds out a sausage as an offering.

FRAU

(Lighthearted)

”Here. It was supposed to be a snack for Augustus, you know?”

VIOLET

(Quiet, it just kind of comes out)

”This is three whole meals for me.”

Violet should not have said that. How does she save it?

VIOLET

”I meant like, the gum might’ve jinxed my needed intake, because I honestly haven’t been hungry at all since it happened.”

The Frau looks sad for Violet.

VIOLET

”Honestly. The chemical balance or whatever was unstable enough to make me like... this, and it probably has something to do with it.”

Just like Willy Wonka, Violet is a ridiculous liar. The Frau shakes her head in the way one does when one reluctantly agrees. She still holds out the sausage, though.

Violet swallows and nods. The Frau puts the sausage on a red-and-white-checkered napkin, and cuts it into coins with a plastic knife and fork she had in her bag in case of emergency. As she looks down at the sausage, she speaks.

FRAU

”Your mother, she said a lot of interesting things.”

VIOLET

”Yeah, she was smart. Very reasonable.”

The Frau stops cutting and looks up, skeptical.

FRAU

”Not smart. How do you say, fehlgeleitet...”

She gestures vaguely with her fork hand, sausage still on the fork.

FRAU

”Ah. Misguided.”

She puts the sausage back, cuts a final coin or two, and then hands the fork, coin impaled on it, to Violet.

FRAU

”It is... this ’nobody loves a loser’ idea, it’s not good to think.”

Violet looks at the sausage coin.

Focus camera on the coin, the Frau out of focus in the background. The focus is intense and makes the viewer dread having to eat it.

Back to Violet, who neither wants to eat nor wants to hear whatever punchline the Frau is trying to get to.

The Frau puts a careful hand on Violet’s shoulder. Violet tenses, on guard.

FRAU

”There are no losers, schatz. There are only people worthy of love.”

But there are losers, plenty of them, and the Gloops are model examples. Just from interviews, Violet knows the Frau enforces their loser status like it’s her life mission, coddling her son, letting him grow fat and lazy. Violet can’t imagine Augustus ever going to sleep hungry, and that’s the Frau’s fault.

The Frau looks sad for her, but then smiles carefully.

FRAU

”Just one sausage, and I’ll stop chewing your ear off.”

Frau Gloop knows nothing. Violet eats the sausage coin to please the woman. Scarlett was a master of keeping up appearances. Violet can do the same.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

This is Mike’s box fort: two or three large cardboard boxes assembled into one super sized box, complete with a makeshift door made of equal parts cardboard and duct tape. The fort is hidden on the lowest rung of a warehouse shelving unit. It is spacious enough to fit three or four people, but right now, the space is taken up by Mike, lying on his side, using his computer, cardboard door askew so he can see outside.

Seeing someone in the near vicinity, he adjusts his position to poke his head out of the box fort and shouts.

MIKE

”Charlie! Charlie! Get over here and look at this!”

Charlie, who was the person he saw, comes and climbs in the box fort. Mike sits up to make room and immediately begins bragging about how good he is at computers.

MIKE

”So any other hacker might’ve looked at this hideous code and given up on the spot, but as I’m sure you’ve guessed, I am not any other hacker. I do not fear the grid, but the grid fears me. My life is man versus machine, and I am the man, and I am winning.”

CHARLIE

”Good?”

Mike turns his open laptop to Charlie.

MIKE

”Check this out.”

Veruca immediately joins them in the box fort. Instead of climbing in, she kneels on the floor outside and leans in, arms on the cardboard for support.

VERUCA

”Is that a map?”

Mike sours.

MIKE

(Under his breath)

”Okay, you’re here too now. Great.”

Veruca does neither notices nor cares for Mike’s new mood, studying the map intently.

VERUCA

”For fear of tooting your horn, this is perfect. Good job! We couldmap out the quickest escape route,”

CHARLIE

(Suggestion)

”Send someone to scout?”

Veruca looks up at Charlie.

VERUCA

”Yes. Problem: masked lackeys wielding the arsenal of a modern day angry mob, torches and all.”

The torch mention comes out of her before she can really think about it, and immediately afterwards, she remembers that three days ago, her dad was in fact torched to death. Something grim flashes across her face before she snaps back to idea mode.

VERUCA

”And also, it would just be a bad strategical move.”

Charlie hesitates to answer. Veruca’s been like this ever since they got to the delivery bay, discarding any negative feeling as soon as she feels it. He really wants to talk to her about it, but whenever he tries to start something, she tosses out some clever quip and changes the subject.

This isn’t the time, though. He remembers himself.

CHARLIE

”But if a route doesn’t work and we don’t know ahead of time, that’s worse, right?”

Veruca grins.

VERUCA

”I love it when you talk tactics.”

She teasingly punches his knee. Mike, inadvertently phased out of this conversation, is more aware of this than he wants to be. He watches Charlie and Veruca discuss plans for the maps and sincerely wishes one of them was somewhere else.

MIKE

”Don’t mind me, I’m just the man with the computer.”

He takes his computer back. Veruca removes herself from the box fort.

VERUCA

”Great job, Michael. Keep it up.”

Charlie climbs out to join her, giving Mike a smile and a thumbs up to affirm the good work. Charlie does this because he does not feel qualified to comment on anything involving computers.

Mike, on the other hand, feels ignored. This is just the status quo now. Charlie trails after Veruca like a loyal dog for reasons Mike does not get. His face falls to jealousy. He just wants a bro, but Veruca, rude Veruca who makes snide remarks and could dislocate Charlie’s arm if she wanted, keeps snatching him away.

Before it’s too late, Mike pokes his head out of the box fort again.

MIKE

”Charlie!”

Charlie turns around, listening. Mike almost forgets what he was going to say.

MIKE

”Can I show you what else I found?”

Charlie nods. Everything about his body language says that he wants to follow Veruca, who did not stop for Mike.

CHARLIE

”Yeah, sure. In an hour?”

Mike, trying to look suave, just gives Charlie a thumbs up while looking busy on his computer. When he looks up, Charlie is already heading after Veruca, who is talking. We don’t hear what about, surrounding sound muffled as Mike watches them go.

**INT. Old delivery bay shelves.**

Veruca and Charlie are walking, talking passionately about possible escape plans that are just bad enough not to work, when they see Joe sitting between some boxes, head in his hands.

Charlie steps away from Veruca a little bit to get a better look at his grandfather.

CHARLIE

”Grandpa Joe, are you okay?”

Joe looks up. Right now, he wears his age terribly.

JOE

”No, my boy.”

Veruca exchanges a look with Charlie and covertly moves her head to ask if she should leave. Charlie nods slightly, and Veruca gives the Buckets distance, heading anywhere else.

Charlie goes and sits down next to Joe, who’s staring at the floor in disbelief.

CHARLIE

(Softly)

”What’s up?

Joe shakes his head.

JOE

”Willy Wonka - I suppose it would be Willy Wonka senior by now - was always an admirable man. He wanted nothing more than to make people happy. And now, look at the factory. Look at this tour.”

He gestures to the air, and then puts his head in his hands again. Charlie looks sad for Joe and tries to comfort.

CHARLIE

”This isn’t Wonka senior, grandpa.”

JOE

”I know, my boy. But if this is his son, how could he possibly have been as a parent? What kind of person does it take to make this man, this mock-chocolatier?”

In all Charlie’s life, the Buckets have been in all kinds of bad situations. And yet, Charlie has never seen his grandfather like this.

CHARLIE

”Sometimes environment matters more than parents.”

Joe shakes his head.

JOE

”What environment creates someone like this? What parent would expose a child to that environment in the first place?”

Charlie doesn’t have an answer to that question.

CHARLIE

”I don’t know, grandpa. I’m sorry.”

**INT. Near the old delivery bay bathroom.**

Veruca, not able to hang around Charlie, is now trying to make conversation with her only other viable friend.

VERUCA

”At least you could rock a purple eyeshadow. Oh, or a red would really pop against your skin, but that feels very patriotic, you know? Very ’read the Great Gatsby but only on a surface level’.”

Reverse shot to show us Violet: leaned against the wall, face unexpressive, looking like she’d rather be staring at the ceiling than listen to Veruca.

When Scarlett was alive, being Veruca’s surface level friend made sense. It was about the status, about moving the Beauregardes up in the world, but now, there’s only the one Beauregarde left, and she’d rather completely disappear. Everything Veruca says sounds so meaningless, just shallow comments about things Violet will never try. This blue skin isn’t something to complement. It’s something to cover up.

VIOLET

”Thanks.”

Veruca smiles. She’s enjoying just getting to be a teen, yes, but she also has to maintain a positive attitude to not alienate Violet, who’s going through a tough time. Veruca knows that. She’s just bad at feelings, and this is the best she can do. When they get out, they won’t talk to each otheragain - these things never last - so she might as well keep up the charade until then.

These girls are not on the same page about much, but they’re on the same page about this: this whole half-friendship-acquaintanceship is temporary.

VERUCA

”We’re building up a whole lookbook for you, huh? Granted, that blue dress won’t fit anymore, but don’t let that stop you. This is a body positivity-only factory. Own it.”

She lightly taps Violet’s shoulder in what is supposed to be an uplifting gesture. Violet’s gaze briefly slips beyond this mortal plane because every time anything touches her, she is reminded of how her body looks now.

VIOLET

”Mhm.”

Veruca notes that Violet is not a physical touch person. There goes Veruca’s go-to way of expressing affection. She cranks up the enthusiasm in her voice a notch to compensate.

VERUCA

”We should totally go shopping after this. Oh, and your instagram following will go through the roof after this, beauty queen. Might even give me a run for my money.”

Violet does not want anyone to see her like this, most certainly not the internet, and she’s not a beauty queen, she’s hideous, and Veruca is way too cheerful. Violet thinks maybe this is what hell feels like.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Song playing in the background: _Never Wanted To Dance_ by Mindless Self Indulgence.

It’s been an hour. Mike leans against a shelf beam by the box fort, intently looking towards the opening Charlie will come from.

Seconds pass, and nobody comes.

Mike adjusts his lean to another, equally cool pose. He slicks his hair back, even though it’s very short and slicking it back doesn’t do much of a difference.

Cut to a later shot, but instead of leaning on a beam, Mike ducks into the opening of the fort to check the time on his computer.

Cut to a later shot, Mike pacing around between the shelves like a pong ball without angle.

Cut to a later shot, Mike standing in the middle between the row of shelves, giving up, stomping to one of the shelves and punching a cardboard box in anger. We get the sense that Charlie isn’t coming.

We see a shot of the cardboard box as Mike pulls away his fist. In a loopy scrawl, it reads ”SALTED CARAMEL CANDY CANES”. A beat, and then Mike punches the box again, landing a decent right hook right on the ”SALT”. Charlie’s stood him up, and it has to be Veruca’s doing.

Mike, on the war path, fishes a black phone out of his pocket. It has no personal indications on it and is the latest model. It’s Rupert Salt’s phone, filled with secrets, forgotten ever since Wonka shot a woman.

He turns it on. Not any more.

End _Never Wanted To Dance._

**INT. Central old delivery bay.**

Everyone has gathered in the middle of the warehouse floor for a makeshift dinner - like it has for the last few days, it consists of candy the Frau has salvaged from the abandoned boxes, things that won’t make them sick if eaten. Augustus was very insistent that sugar based candy can’t actually go bad, just decrease in quality. Norman verified this, and so now the Frau serves a meal of hard candies and lollipops.

She pours a handful into Joe’s hands, and he picks at them.

Violet sucks on a lollipop. She hates the concept of living on candy, hates the empty calories, but the alternative is having the Frau drag up actual food for her. Violet will take useless sugar over that any day.

Norman looks at his ration of candy like his teeth will fall out any second.

The Frau serves Charlie a big portion of candies and then claps her hands together.

FRAU

(Trying to keep spirits up)

”Guten Appetit!”

Veruca raises a lollipop as if to give a toast.

Charlie raises his lollipop in response. He has mixed feelings on the candy meals, because while he gets about as much energy from them as he gets from what his family can afford, candy has always been this special thing. Now, it’s the only thing he has to eat. The magic dissipates with every meal.

Mike sees Veruca and Charlie toast each other. He can’t let this go on.

He pulls out the phone.

MIKE

”So I think this is as good a time as any to talk about Veruca’s spying.”

Veruca rolls her eyes and eats a candy.

Violet adjusts her position, curious. Veruca being a spy was kind of lost on her, because Scarlett was shot just moments before that reveal.

MIKE

”I’ve got some fun business content here, courtesy of the man, the myth, the king of cheesing it, Rupert Salt.”

He waves the phone in the air, and Veruca stops chewing to look at him. Mike goes straight to reading from it.

MIKE

(Reading)

”’Everything is in place for pickup at’ bla bla bla... ’what do I owe?’ ’... owed debt of approximately ten-’ no wait, ’a hundred-’, no? Damn, that’s money. Rick, did you know how many zeroes your mafiabait dad spent on this tour? He really whaled it.”

Veruca does not reply. She’s frozen, not because anything Mike is trying to hurt her with is actually getting through, but because of the phone. Her dad’s phone.

MIKE

(Reading)

”Bla bla bla, ’debt may be lessened and paid off in parts provided you get ahold of information valuable enough to make up for expenses made by the Slugworth corporation towards this project.’ You went in with the plan to spy and because of that, we’re in this situation.”

He looks at her as if anticipating a counterargument. He does not get it.

Veruca tilts her head.

VERUCA

”You stole my dad’s phone?”

FRAU

”You stole Herr Salt’s phone?”

Mike stands up.

MIKE

”Keep up. You’re not a good person, Veruca. You’re a spy. A rotten egg. A bad, bad nut.”

He gestures with the phone in his hand, pointing it at Veruca as if it were a weapon.

The phrase ’bad nut’ kicks Joe to life. Back in his factory days, ’bad nut’ was a warning.

JOE

”Nobody caused this, young man. This was all spurred on by an accident - miss Beauregarde, my deepest regrets for your mother. I could have patched her up if not for... everything.”

Violet shrinks a little bit and looks away.

CHARLIE

”Mike, she’s not responsible for this. Willy Wonka is.”

Mike shakes his head, convinced of his own side.

MIKE

”No. No, she triggered the aggro.”

CHARLIE

(Confused)

”You’re the one who told him, though!”

Charlie’s words don’t get through to Mike. Rather, it’s the opposite. Mike is not being rational. Charlie is right, and that is what actually happened, and Mike knows this, but god, Veruca has turned Charlie against him, and he can’t back down and let that slide.

Norman carefully steps up.

NORMAN

(Timid)

”Mike, ehm, calm down.”

Mike pushes him away.

MIKE

(Rough)

”Don’t tell me what to do.”

Veruca inhales and rises. She needs the phone. She couldn’t care less about blame right now, she needs the phone, needs to open it and see that her dad was a person, needs a memento like trees need sunlight.

VERUCA

(Careful)

”It’s a stressful time, Michael, but that’s not an excuse to act like a total asshole. Everyone here is stressed.”

(Demanding)

”Give me the phone.”

Mike’s eyes flicker from Veruca to the phone, the phone to Veruca. After a couple passes, he throws the phone directly at the floor.

It doesn’t break into a thousand pieces, but it makes a loud glass breaking-sound that echoes to the warehouse. The Frau flinches in the background. Mike looks up at Veruca, seething with undefined rage.

MIKE

”My name is Mike, princess.”

Veruca looks at him, eyes cold and hard. She’s attentive of the phone, though, ready to grab it when she has the chance. Mike notices this.

He brings his foot over the phone and stomps. There’s a crunch.

Veruca watches all that’s left of her dad shatter under Mike’s foot. She hadn’t even known it was still around, that it hadn’t vanished with the rest of him. It had outlasted him, as material possessions do, but not long enough to find it’s way back. All the messages, all the photos, gone.

If Mike wants a fight, he can have it. Veruca needs to take out some aggression.

VERUCA

”This princess’s hands are right here and ripe for throwing, Michael.”

**EXT. Treaticetown High.**

Establishing shot. A sleek black car pulls into the parking lot. Wilkinson steps out and takes off his sunglasses. He folds and hangs them in his trench coat pocket while eyeing the school.

**INT. The principal’s office.**

Camera on the back of Wilkinson, standing in front of an ornate wooden desk. We do not see who is sitting behind it quite yet. As the camera pans, Wilkinson speaks.

WILKINSON

”And you’ve given us everything?”

ERNEST PIKER, principal of Treaticetown High, is a bald, serious man, simultaneously the inverse of a youth pastor and the natural progression of one. He clasps his hands on the desk. His elbows do not touch the table.

ERNEST

”Yes. These are the student records for the past sixty years. Meticulously kept. Treaticetown High has never missed a child.”

Wilkinson nods.

WILKINSON

”Good work. This will be quite helpful.”

Ernest leans back slightly in his tall leather chair.

ERNEST

”May we help you with anything else?”

WILKINSON

”A student of yours - Charlie Bucket. What would you say about him?”

Ernest straightens, even though his posture was already straight.

ERNEST

”Hard working. Clever enough, though Miranda Mary tells me his heart is not always in his studies.Unfortunate family situation, but with the right amount of work, he will make up for it.”

WILKINSON

”Unfortunate family situation?”

ERNEST

”One of those ’layoff families’. The father got picked up for drug peddling a couple years back. The PTA did not give us an easy time that week.”

WILKINSON

”Ah. How would I go about contacting him?”

ERNEST

”Send a letter. They do not have cell phones and we’ve been informed the stationary only works for fifteen minutes per day. Always a delight to know one of these children will listen when spoken to.”

Wilkinson grabs a cardboard box standing below the desk and goes to leave.

WILKINSON

”Interesting. That will be all.”

**INT. Central old delivery bay.**

We return to Mike and Veruca’s fight, slightly later in. They’re slowly pacing around each other, as if they were predators about to throw down. Veruca broke her stilettos last episode, but Mike is on his toes anyway, just to make absolutely sure that he’s taller than her.

MIKE

”I just hope all the debt and murder was worth it. Did you get a lot of likes on your instagram? Was the ticket _shiny_?”

VERUCA

”You can’t shame me by calling me materialistic, Michael. I am, and I have no reason to hide it.”

MIKE

(In a mock-british accent)

”Oh-em-gee, hashtag shallow pride-”

(Back to normal)

”If that ticket had gone to someone who actually gave a crap about chocolate, we wouldn’t be here right now!”

Veruca smiles like the spawn of satan and takes a deep breath.

VERUCA

”Okay then.”

(Bitch mode)

”If the ticket belonged to someone who actually cared about chocolate, why are you even here? You don’t like chocolate. In fact, you think chocolate is a gay candy for sissies and pansies and homos, and you proudly said so on international television.”

She’s struck a nerve. Mike gets over it, in the way you might get over the loss of a car door if you were in the middle of an intense car chase.

That is, you’ll be upset about it once the rest is over.

Mike puffs up his chest, so as to look confident and respectable.

MIKE

”Yeah, and I stand by that. Got a problem?

Veruca thrives.

VERUCA

(Bitch mode^2)

”Oh, I’d love to burst your bubble. You’re not the ’alpha male’ here. You’re not even an alpha. You are a sad little boy who cracked the algorithm for attention, with insecurities so deep the first thing you did with that attention was assert yourself as one of the ’strong’ ones. Nobody can see through the cracks if the whole word thinks there aren’t any. Tell me, Sherlock, am I on to something?”

That’s not a loss of a car door. That’s straight up being rammed by a truck. Mike darkens and stops pacing, looking at Veruca with enough malice for the Frau to instinctively step in front of Veruca. Veruca scoots the woman away and stands strong.

FRAU

(Trying to make peace)

”Let us not fight, everyone. It’s very bad for the appetite!”

Norman very slowly shakes his head at the Frau.

Violet, basically hiding where she sits, looks anywhere except for the Frau.

Mike doesn’t move.

MIKE

(Voice dripping with venom)

”Funny. You were pettier about a stain on your pretty little princess dress than about the actual death of your father. He really deserved it, huh?”

They stare at each other. Veruca’s eyes falter, and with a huff, she turns on her heel and marches away, pulling out her phone and turning it on in one fluid motion. Charlie stops being paralyzed and takes a couple steps to head after her.

CHARLIE

(Shouting)

”Veruca!"

There’s no use in keeping up. Behind Charlie, Mike is mime-yelling obscenities, but because the focus is on Charlie, we can’t lip read the exact swears.

The Frau steps in.

FRAU

”That was unfair, young Mann.”

Norman also steps in, but to talk the Frau down. The Frau looks as if she might grab Mike by the ear and give him a stern talking to and that will not work.

NORMAN

”He, ehm... neither side was called for.”

Charlie turns to see Norman, amazed at how stupid that sentence was. Next to him, Joe is processing all of this and subconsciously leaning away from Mike.

CHARLIE

(Can’t believe this)

”What? He said her dad deserved to die! She- You weren’t there. I was. Also, we can’t know if- You don’t- god... Mike, how would you feel it was your dad?”

Mike takes fake offense. He puts his hand to his heart, just to hammer home how fake it is.

MIKE

(Half-whisper)

”Bro, I can’t answer that with him in the room.”

Charlie just looks at him. No words, just raw, mind-blowing frustration.

MIKE

”She’s a bitch! She needed a wake-up call!”

CHARLIE

”You’re also kind of a bitch, though.”

And then, Charlie turns and walks off in the direction Veruca was headed. He would rather sit in silence with her, trying and failing to get her to talk about her feelings, than do literally anything around Mike right now.

As he walks off, we see Mike behind him again, out of focus, as he calls after Charlie. Also out of focus, the Frau begins picking up the pieces of Rupert’s phone.

MIKE

(Getting progressively louder)

”Wow, we’re really saddling up the old ’wail on Mike’-wagon today. Really just pouring salt in the wound by the bucket, pun intended. Loving the degradation going on. She doesn’t care about you! She’s a spy! Charlie!”

Charlie, face in focus, is determined not to look back. Mike, out of focus, pushes away his father when he gets too close and then storms off in a different direction.

**INT. By the bricked off exit.**

Veruca sits on the floor, leaned against the bricked off exit. She looks at her phone intently. Charlie walks up to her, and when she doesn’t even move an eyelid at his presence, he leans against the wall and slides down.

CHARLIE

”My offer to talk about it is still standing.”

VERUCA

(Sarcastic)

”Does your offer have an expiry date?”

She does not look up from her phone. In fact, she’s looking at it harder.

Charlie grows determined. Veruca doesn’t have to speak, but she can’t isolate herself, either.

CHARLIE

”Okay. I feel better when I can talk about what I’m feeling. I’m going to do that, and you don’t have to follow.”

He waits for Veruca to respond. Veruca looks up from her phone with just her eyes. Sure. Talk.

CHARLIE

”The men in my family are factory people, through and through. Grandpa Joe worked here right up until the layoffs. My father did toothpaste tubes the next town over until the recession, and recently, I’ve been applying to any factory that will take me.”

As Charlie speaks, Veruca realizes that she shouldn’t be looking at her phone. Of course she shouldn’t been looking at her phone, the boy is baring his soul. Veruca was not made to talk about feelings.

Charlie sigh-laughs.

CHARLIE

”My family keeps telling me I have a chance at a scholarship, that I’ll be the first person to go to college since grandpa George, but I can’t. I need to stay here and work so my family can afford something other than cabbage and potatoes for dinner.”

Veruca very slowly puts her phone down and looks at Charlie. Really looks at Charlie. His life is a lot worse than she suspected.

Charlie meets her eye and shrugs. He has something sad in his eyes.

CHARLIE

(Self-reprimanding)

”This whole tour was supposed to be an indulgence, you know? Me finally listening to them and treating myself to just this one thing. But, well... look how that turned out.”

Veruca doesn’t know what to say. She counts the zeroes her father spent on the golden ticket and imagines if there were only four of them. If there was only one. God, what is she supposed to say? What is she supposed to do?

VERUCA

”I’m sorry.”

Charlie shakes his head.

CHARLIE

”You don’t have to pretend to understand. I don’t want pity. People pity me enough as is.”

It’s not pity, is it? No, Veruca doesn’t think so. She needs to say something. Comfort him? No, that does imply pity. Suggest a solution? To his face? No, she can’t do that, either, it’ll sound bitchy, and she is a bitch, but she can’t be a bitch here, about this, and-

VERUCA

”Okay.”

Internally, Veruca is yelling at herself for not saying something appropriate or helpful or literally anything else.

Silence. Charlie gives a thin, awkward smile.

CHARLIE

”So that’s me. Cards on the table. If you don’t want to talk about your end, that’s fine.”

Veruca doesn’t want to talk about her end, not because she’s uncomfortable with it, but because there’s so much to be said about Charlie’s end. So much.

He’s not going to continue, so Veruca opens her mouth before she can think about it.

VERUCA

”I don’t want to mourn my dad.”

Charlie doesn’t nod. He just looks at her. This feels better than nodding would. Less patronizing.

VERUCA

”And it’s not because I didn’t care about him, it’s because I did. It’s like... in Tuck Everlasting, the Tucks are stuck in time while everything changes around them. They’re everlasting, they live forever, but nothing else is, and they think they’re cursed, but the pain isn’t from living forever, it’s from not having anyone else, but like, why would you even want to know someone forever? That’s unrealistic, people change and grow apart, you’d get bored of each other otherwise, but if knowing a person forever is impossible, why would you make the effort at all? And so the Tucks stay hidden and wait until it’s all over, because that’s better than making other people suffer with them.”

It’s easier to just not get close to people, Veruca thinks, and that’s not something she can tell other people. She’s essentially telling Charlie he’s not worth talking to in the long run. Charlie Bucket, who’s taken the time to come here and talk to her. Charlie Bucket, infinitely patient.

She doesn’t want to push away Charlie. That’s a new one.

VERUCA

(Trying to take it back)

”God, I’m rambling.”

Charlie shakes his head. His eyes are soft. God, they’re soft.

CHARLIE

”You make sense to me.”

Veruca’s heart skips a beat.

CHARLIE

”Mister Salt didn’t choose to die - and also, we don’t even know that he’s dead, there weren’t any remains, he might just-”

VERUCA

”Let him be dead, Bucket.”

Charlie nudges her shoulder and gives her an encouraging smile. Bloody hell, Veruca planned to never see these people again. Why did Charlie have to be likable?

CHARLIE

”He didn’t choose to leave you. AndI won’t either, unless you want me to.”

Veruca smiles. A beat, and then she scoots closer and puts her head on Charlie’s shoulder. Charlie is overwhelmed by this. Veruca does not notice.

VERUCA

(Mumbling into his shoulder)

”Thanks.”

**INT. Old delivery forklift.**

Norman has the hood on the back of the forklift up and tries to make sense of the engine. Joe and the Frau approach.

JOE

”We need to talk about Mike.”

Norman looks up.

NORMAN

”Go on.”

JOE

”He is, pardon my language, beastly.”

The Frau shakes her head. No child is beastly. There’s always a reason, always an explanation, and with Mike, she thinks the reason is anger.

FRAU

”He isn’t beastly! But Herr Teavee, I think you need to talk to him. About feelings. You don’t know what kind of pent up frustration he might have to make him like this.”

JOE

”By like this, we mean his temper, and his manners. Atrocious manners, that one. Terribly impolite.”

The Frau does not frown at Joe for putting down this boy who probably has a valid reason for how he’s acting, because she’s a composed woman who would hate herself if she started an argument. She puts a comforting hand on Norman’s shoulder.

FRAU

”Everything a parent does matters. You need to reach out to him, show him you want to listen. That’s how you get your child to trust you. Don’t be estranged. Don’t put him down for what he feels.”

Norman tilts his head and shakes off the hand, returning to the engine.

NORMAN

”It’s my business how I raise my son.”

Which yes, it is, but that does not guarantee that he’s doing a good job, and the Frau can’t just let things slide just because one person claims they are - what is she supposed to do, tell Violet her mother was right?

Norman speaks without looking up, poking seemingly randomly at engine wires.

NORMAN

”He’s a good kid. This is a bad period. It passes. Doris and I have a system for this sort of thing.”

The Frau exchanges a look with Joe, partly looking for guidance and partly signaling to him not to say that ”actually, he is evil”.

She returns her attention to Norman and steps closer to the forklift, so they’d be face to face if he just looked up.

FRAU

”And I’m sure your system works wonders at home, but this isn’t home, Herr Teavee.”

NORMAN

”He has his computer to calm him down.”

Joe steps in the moment Norman says ’computer’.

JOE

”You cannot raise a child in front of a screen. It will mess with his brain. Make him violent. Unpredictable.”

Norman looks up and glares at Joe. It’s the most authority Norman has had in _Candyman_ so far. If he could channel this energy on a regular basis, Mike wouldn’t be so brazen.

NORMAN

(Teacher voice)

”Studies say attributing violence to video games takes other factors out of consideration. Correlation is not causation. The computer is fine.”

Neither the Frau nor Joe argue with Norman about this. Mostly because for a second, Norman seemed like he might win that potential argument.

Norman returns to the engine.

NORMAN

”I will talk to him.”

He looks up and gives the adults a look.

NORMAN

”But you do take your own advice, right? You know exactly how your children work?”

Joe nods, mostly confidently. The Frau nods, but her mind is racing. What if she drove Augustus away? She never did hug him enough. They say you need ten hugs per day to feel good, and she only ever got away with four or five. Did they spend enough time together? Will they ever see each other again? What if they don’t?

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Violet peeks into Mike’s box fort. Mike is on his computer, typing rapidly.

VIOLET

”Hey.”

MIKE

(Absentminded)

”Howdy.”

He does not look up, does not even move his head. In this way, he is very much like Veruca. Unlike Veruca, Mike is actually being productive with his screen time. There’s a lot of cyber-green code on the screen and it all looks very cool.

Violet climbs into the fort and sits down. The cardboard walls crease a little bit when she leans on them.

MIKE

(Absentminded)

”All this code is formatted wrong. Like, to get anywhere I have to like, go around a bunch of extra bullcrap and then reverse-engineer my way back. The commands just keep branching out, too. Whole mess. Bad to look at.”

Mike explains this good enough to make any computer whizzes in the audience suspend their disbelief and accept that for story purposes, Willy Wonka’s server is messed up.

VIOLET

(Low-energy impressed)

”Wow.”

MIKE

”And then it’s decrypt files this and decrypt files that and I think they might be sorted with some sort of cipher, because there’s no actual pattern?”

Violet looks at Mike, still deep in candy cyberspace.

VIOLET

”So Veruca.”

Mike stops typing and places the computer to the side. He turns towards Violet and crosses his legs.

MIKE

”She is Cady from Mean Girls.”

VIOLET

”Explain.”

MIKE

”Look, my mom made me watch it and when you pretend like all the girly nonsense isn’t happening it’s actually a very interesting study in power dynamics-”

VIOLET

”About the comparison.”

MIKE

”Is only here so she can collect information and bring to other parties. Seems friendly but is just pretending so when we’re at our weakest she can snap and leave us for nothing.”

VIOLET

”Snap like:”

(Mike impression)

”’She doesn’t care! She’s a spy!’”

Mike rolls his eyes.

MIKE

”Oh, shut up.”

VIOLET

(Doing an impression of Mike doing a bad impression of Veruca)

”’Oh emmmm geeee-”

Mike punches Violet in the shoulder. She stops and rubs her arm. Calling people out is only okay when he’s not on the receiving end, thinks Mike, and yet, he’s being called out.

They look at each other, and for a moment, there’s a weird silence.

MIKE

”You’re making a boogie bomb out of a grenade. It’s not flaming, it’s valid criticism, and-”

As Mike speaks, we hear a cough in the background.

MIKE

”Great. Now we have to deal with status effects. Poggers.”

We hear the cough again. It’s a deep, painful sounding cough, like that of someone choking. Mike pokes his head out of the box fort and looks around.

MIKE

(Shouting)

”Hey can whoever just coughed maybe not die? Or, well. There are exceptions. You know who you are.”

The cough is coming from inside the box fort. Mike looks back at Violet, who is not coughing.

VIOLET

(Shrugging)

”You said the system was messed up. Maybe it’s sick.”

Mike speaks as he ducks back in.

MIKE

”Computers don’t get sick. They get viruses, yes, but they don’t cough, I don’t even know why they would do that.”

Mike pulls up the computer. He presses the mute button, and the coughing stops. He unmutes, and the coughing picks up again.

MIKE

”Yeah, okay. This is new.”

**INT. Central old loading bay.**

The lights in the warehouse have been shut down, save for a few portable lamps. By one of these lamps, Violet lies on a flattened cardboard box, nothing but a plastic bag of marshmallows for a pillow. A pair of rotund legs come into frame. Violet tenses.

The Frau sits down a few feet away. She smiles at Violet, and then goes about her own business, taking a half-knit red hat out of her handbag.

Violet turns to her other side so she doesn’t have to look at the Frau. We see her lying facing the camera, and behind her, the Frau, knitting.

The Frau starts humming a lullaby - _Schlafe mein Prinzen, schlaf’ ein_. She used to hum it to Augustus. Now, she can’t. It’s a comfort, instead. She just hopes it comforts Violet too.

Violet grows drowsy, and eventually closes her eyes completely. Her second to last thought before she drifts off is that maybe, the Frau isn’t dangerous. Her very last thought is a rebuttal, because the Frau still has some bad ideas actually, but then she drifts off, the slightest hint of a smile on her lips.

The Frau, from where she’s sitting, sees that Violet’s fallen asleep. She carefully puts down her knitting and slowly takes off her coat, then tip-toes over to Violet and puts it over her. The Frau can tell Violet has a lot to work through, but she knows the girl will get through it. While Violet does that, the Frau will help in whatever way she can. That’s a silent promise.

She turns off the lamp.

**INT. Old delivery bay shelves.**

Joe lies on a shelf just above the floor, trying and failing to sleep. Next to him, he is dimly lit up by a portable lamp.

Down the shelves comes Veruca, walking fast and coming to a halt in front of Joe. She stands with her head held high.

Joe looks up.

JOE

(Helpful)

”Miss Veruca, if you are looking for Charlie I would advice to search by the entrance, he says he wants to be on guard-”

Veruca shakes her head once.

VERUCA

”I’m here to talk to you, grandfather Joseph. How much do you need?”

Joe blinks, wondering if perhaps he misheard her - teenspeak, and all that.

JOE

”Would you care to repeat that?”

Veruca sighs and steps forward.

VERUCA

”Money. I’ll write a cheque, just tell me how much.”

All these teens, trying to be the adults in situations they should not know about.

Joe and Charlie have different relationships to money. Charlie is a slave to it. When he was a child, he made his annual chocolate bar last months at a time. When he got older, he started doing the same thing with money, obsessing over every quarter. Joe, on the other hand, has lived long enough to know it can’t buy happiness.

Joe sits up.

JOE

”Money is not all that matters. In fact, in the grand scheme of things, it matters very little. Family, that is what matters. Family and friends.”

VERUCA

(Frustrated)

”But it’s not useless, either. Society runs on money. It’s its lifeblood. I highly doubt your family can subside on the power of friendship. Tell me an amount, any amount.”

It’s equal parts stubbornness and common sense. Admitting they need help means admitting they’re worth less, submitting themselves to other people’s control. No offer comes without a cost. Like Charlie will gladly tell Joe: they need to minimize costs to make it work.

JOE

”We will not take handouts.”

VERUCA

”What about what your grandson wants?”

JOE

”Charlie’s dream is for us to be happy, and we are.”

That’s a lie, and Joe knows it. Right now, they’re a life boat, just barely bobbing over the waves. They’re above the water. That’s enough for Joe, though.

Veruca tries very hard not to curse this old man out.

VERUCA

(Bitch mode-adjacent)

”Charlie’s dream is for you to have a dinner of more than potatoes and cabbage. Both your dreams can be achieved if you just take the cheque. Please.”

Soon, Jack will send out a job application that gets accepted, and then, they won’t even need borrowed money. At least, that’s what Joe tells himself when Charlie puts other thoughts in his head.

Veruca’s face softens. She looks almost sad as she crouches in front of Joe, lowering herself to his height.

VERUCA

”It’ll solve everything. Why wouldn’t you want to solve everything?”

JOE

”You are a very good friend, Veruca, but this is not your place to interfere.”

She shakes her head, looking for some final counterargument, but Joe cuts her off.

JOE

(Genuinely)

”I would be happy if I never walked again, and I would be happy if I slaved away cleaning vents for twelve hours each day, so long as my family was home in the evenings.”

For a beat, Veruca goes quiet, thinking. Then, she pops up.

VERUCA

(Eureka)

”Oh my god, I’ve got it.”

Joe smiles.

JOE

”I am glad you understand.”

Veruca shakes her head multiple times and begins backing away from the shelves, keeping her eyes on Joe.

VERUCA

(Loud)

”No, not that, you’re wrong- the vents. The vents, Joseph, there are vents! We have the vents!”

She points up.

High up on the warehouse wall, just barely visible, there is a vent grate.

**INT. The FBI’s temporary office, nighttime.**

Wilkinson sits at his desk, thumbing through files. Placed on the desk is the cardboard box, half-filled with brown paper folders. A single lamp is lit above him.

Glockenberry enters.

GLOCKENBERRY

”Anything turn up?”

WILKINSON

(Still reading)

”Plenty on Wonka Senior.”

GLOCKENBERRY

”And Wonka Junior?”

WILKINSON

”Currently digging up a birth certificate, a school record, any possible aliases he might have been made to use.”

Glockenberry turns the lights on. Wilkinson squints at the light as she puts a plastic bag with a generic takeout logo on the desk and sits down.

GLOCKENBERRY

”No movement from the factory today. Plenty of movement outside it.”

WILKINSON

”At least we will know the instant those kids get out.”

GLOCKENBERRY

”So will the world.”

She takes a folder out of the box and opens it. Wilkinson nods and continues reading.

**INT. On top of the shelves.**

We see Violet sticking out of the entrance to a vent. She’s managed to fit in the vent to about her waist, but can’t get in further.

Reverse shot. We see Mike.

MIKE

”Love a woman with curves, am I right?”

Pull out, and we see Charlie standing next to Mike, looking put off by Mike’s comment. We also get a better look at the setting: they are standing on top of a big warehouse shelf, surrounded in part by boxes.

Inside the vent, Violet’s eyes light up as she notes this comment. It’s the first time her body’s been painted as desirable and Violet, raised to think a person’s worth is determined by other people, silently clings to the words like a starving child to gum.

Down on the floor, Norman stands, looking up and carrying Mike’s computer. He sighs, but boys will be boys.

Back with Charlie and Mike, Mike holds up a hand for a high five. Charlie does not give him a high five.

In front of them, Veruca stands with her back turned. She cringes, and then focuses on the matter at hand, shifting her weight from one leg to the other.

VERUCA

”Violet, queen, this isn’t going to work.”

Inside the vent, Violet grows more determined. Her body will not get the best of her here. She won’t allow it.

VIOLET

”I did performative gymnastics for thirteen years. I can do this.”

Frau Gloop is standing by the wall protectively, in case something goes wrong. She counts under her breath.

FRAU

(Quiet and sad)

”But you’re sixteen, schatz...”

Nobody hears her. Veruca shakes her head sympathetically.

VERUCA

”No, unfortunately, you cannot. Could someone literally help her out?”

Charlie walks up to help. The Frau is already helping Violet down by the legs, extremely careful about everything. Charlie takes a leg to help and is immediately caught off guard. He has the muscle mass of a person who grew up on a diet of the cheapest groceries money can buy. The Frau supports more weight in return. She is stronger than one might think, because she eats well and carries so very many groceries.

MIKE

(Snarky)

”Way to be a team player, Rick.”

Veruca looks over her shoulder with fire in her eyes.

VERUCA

”Find the vent layout, or so help me, I will shove you in there with my bare hands.”

Charlie, still helping Violet down, gives Mike a begging look. Mike groans and begins climbing down from the shelves.

When Violet has two feet on the shelf top, she immediately slips out of their hands. Her body did get the best of her. Her awful, horrible body. The Frau gives her an encouraging ’you’ll get them next time’-smile and Violet wishes her mother was there to give the Frau a piece of her mind.

Mike drops down from the final layer of shelves and snatches his computer out of his father’s grasp. He looks up.

MIKE

”Don’t mind me, I’m just going to lap Al Powell from Die Hard with... oh, who did you think? Who is John McClane? Are you gonna make my father, whose only source of exercise is aerobics, do the venting?”

NORMAN

(Half-scientific)

”Aerobics are, ehm, excellent for the immune system, the heart, maintaining your weight,”

Violet has just begun climbing down when he says this. It feels like having a nail hammered into your skull. Violet is never desperate - with Scarlett as a mother, desperation did nothing - but right now, she would do anything to look normal.

NORMAN

”But it is not ideal for crawling, especially not for extended amounts of time-”

MIKE

”Nobody cares!”

Violet carefully sets herself down on the ground and begins heading for the bathroom. Mike, still looking up, holds up a hand for a high five. She returns it as she walks past. Mike silently celebrates the successful high five.

FRAU

”Well, I would love to hear more about aerobics, Herr Teavee.”

Norman appreciates the thought. Mike rolls his eyes.

MIKE

(Agenda: hang out with Charlie. Method: make it seem like he couldn’t care less about hanging out with Charlie)

”Actually, just make Charlie do it.

Veruca considers what she has to work with. She eyes Charlie, who wants to do it to contribute, but would break his back in the process. That would be bad. She doesn’t want that to happen.

Mike will be reading the map. The strategic move is not always the fun one. It rarely is in Veruca’s life.

Angle up on top of the shelves from down on the floor. Veruca steps forward to the edge. She looks down at Mike, partially blocking out the bright warehouse lamp above her, face covered in shadow.

VERUCA

”No. You’re ’larping’ with the spy, Sherlock.”

Mike takes a very deep breath.

Charlie approaches the edge, not as dramatically lit as Veruca, and recognizes that Mike is about to pop off.

CHARLIE

(Has approximately ten seconds to mediate conflict)

”Please, no, no, don’t do this again, we have to work together-”

Mike opens his mouth. Cut just before he can yell a network-prohibited swear.

**INT. Old delivery bathroom.**

Song playing in the background: _Feel Something_ by Bea Miller.

Violet washes her hands under the dim bathroom lamp. She looks at her reflection, and once again hates it. There’s a comfort in knowing exactly what’s wrong with her.

She pushes a hand to her stomach and pulls it in, turned to the side in front of the mirror so she can see if it makes a difference. It barely does..

The toilet is right there.

Violet swallows. In the mirror, her reflection looks worried, but Violet tells herself some things have to be done.

End _Feel Something_ at the cut.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Charlie and Mike sit next to each other in the box fort. Mike has just placed the laptop in front of them.

CHARLIE

”Is it working?”

MIKE

(Sarcastic)

”Is water wet?”

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca lies on her stomach and elbows in a ventilation shaft. She’s lit up exclusively by her large rose-patterned phone, which she grips as if her life depends on it. The screen shows a phone call.

VERUCA

”I can hear you.”

CHARLIE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Are you sure this is safe?”

VERUCA

”I will not be engaging with the enemy, and as such, I will not be in danger. I get intel, I get out.”

MIKE (OVER THE PHONE)

(Spiteful)

”Wouldn’t put it past Wonka to booby trap the vents. Install a flame thrower.”

Veruca sighs. This again.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

(Dry)

”Ha, ha. You will die alone.”

Charlie rubs his forehead, disappointed that they’re lapsed right back into arguing again.

MIKE

”Correct me if I’m wrong, but which one of us is alone in the vents right now? Because it’s you, right?”

CHARLIE

(Louder than planned)

”Please stop threatening each other!”

Both Mike and Veruca shut up. Mike makes a face a little like the Real Housewives cat. Charlie takes a deep breath and takes control of the situation, using the voice he uses when his family suggests he do anything that would waste money.

CHARLIE

(Clear)

”You do not have to get along, but please, can you act like human beings?”

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca thinks. Charlie’s the one who asked, after all, and he has a point. She can compromise her integrity for the greater good. For a little while, at least.

VERUCA

”Yeah, okay.”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Charlie looks expectantly at Mike.

Slowly zoom in on Mike, growing increasingly more frustrated by the second. He thinks not about the answer, but about how to phrase it. When tension is at it’s highest and the viewer wants to hear him speak the most, cut to the next scene.

**INT. Mike’s box fort, later.**

Charlie is leaned over the computer. He looks like he’s enjoying himself. We do not see Mike.

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”So basically one would think that a book called Tuck Everlasting would, in fact, last forever, but instead it’s really short and existential.”

CHARLIE

(Keeping the conversation going because he likes hearing Veruca’s voice)

”Isn’t there a love story? Do they have time for the love story?”

**INT. The vents.**

VERUCA

”Oh, don’t get me started on Jesse Tuck. I could outright out-write Natalie Babbit herself about this Tuck Everlasting pain in the ass.”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

They laugh. Camera on Charlie. It moves to the side, showing us that yes, Mike is still here. He is staring into the void, third wheeling and hating it.

CHARLIE

”You’re coming up on a turn. Go right.”

Yeah no, he’s not doing this. He gets up.

MIKE

”You know how to use the computer. It coughs sometimes. Just so you know.”

Charlie looks up at him. Mike has already climbed out of the box fort and walked away.

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”What’s going on?”

Charlie returns his attention to the computer.

CHARLIE

”Mike just left?”

He looks up again to see if Mike is still around, but he sees nothing. For a second, Charlie isn’t oblivious - Mike might be lonely? Is that it? - but then he files it away for later.

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”Huh.”

**INT. Old delivery forklift.**

Mike plops down in the drivers seat of the broken down forklift. Norman, who has been examining the engine to no avail, closes the back lid.

NORMAN

”Weren’t you, ehm, surveying the vents?”

MIKE

(Sarcastic)

”Weren’t you going to fix this forklift?”

Norman moves around the forklift, so he can have eye contact with his son. As he comes around the passenger’s side, Mike looks away and puts his feet up on the steering wheel.

NORMAN

”I am not a technician, Mike.”

MIKE

”No, you’re a chemist, which is worse in every possible way. They don’t need me, by the way. It’s not harder than reading a map correctly.”

Norman climbs into the seat next to Mike. He sits like a regular person.

MIKE

”If you’re gonna attempt to discipline me, save it. I know what I did wrong, and I promise I’ll try, or whatever. Leave me alone.”

Norman struggles to connect to his son, which is bad, because this is supposed to be an empathetic father-son type of moment. He needs to say this, and he needs to say it now.

NORMAN

”No, ehm, it’s... I wanted to say, your mother would be proud of you. You’ve really manned up since things took a turn for the worse.”

Mike still doesn’t look at his father. He fixates on a specific spot on the wall. There’s something avoidant in his eyes, buried under copious amounts of apathy.

MIKE

(Through his teeth)

”Why wouldn’t she be?”

A pause. We see the Teavee men from the front, seated next to each other in wildly different positions. Neither says anything until Norman finally works up the courage to say what he was getting to.

NORMAN

”I, uhm, can’t say I agree with your methods, but, miss Salt is not always nice about what she says. You stood up to that. That’s good. Standing up for yourself is good, it’s a hard thing to do. It will help you in the future. And, uh, bad methods, but the principle is there. The right chemical reaction when elements don’t mesh.”

Years ago, a switch flipped, and since then, Mike has been an active volcano. Doris says to be more disciplined, but Norman can only grow the backbone she wants him to grow for fifteen minutes at a time. Mike doesn’t have that problem.

NORMAN

”You’ve, uhm. You’re stronger than I was when I was your age. Than I am now, probably.”

Mike really doesn’t like having this conversation, but he can’t show that. Normally, he’d cross his arms, and they twitch at the impulse, but that would imply what Norman just said was anything but a compliment. It was a compliment. That’s a good thing. That’s what Mike thinks every day.

MIKE

(Hard tone)

”It’s not hard to be stronger than you are. You’re a scrub, and my stats are buffed through the roof. I’ve chosen a field of study that is actually useful, I can speak up for myself, and I’m not a god damn sissy. Take notes.”

Norman shakes his head and pats his son’s shoulder once.

NORMAN

(Giving up)

”I’m proud of you too. Don’t forget that.”

Then, Norman rises and leaves.

Mike looks over his shoulder, checking to make sure Norman is gone, and then crosses his arms. His face is so tense, if you were to throw something at it, the thing would bounce right back.

He squeezes his fists around his arms, nails digging into his shirt.

**EXT. The Bucket residence, mid-day.**

Wilkinson walks up to the front door of the run-down Bucket house, snow piled high on either side, and knocks. He waits a beat. Nothing.

WILKINSON

(Loud enough to be heard through the door)

”This is the FBI. I’m here to ask questions.”

Another beat. He checks his watch. Nothing. Through the broken window, we hear muffled bickering, and then, slow footsteps.

Wilkinson crosses his arms.

The door opens slowly. On the other side we see Georgina, shivering, leaning heavily on her improvised crutch: an old floor lamp.

GEORGINA

”Come on in.”

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room, mid-day, later.**

Wilkinson sits on a stool in front of the elder’s double bed. In the bed, we see three of four elders: maternal grandparents George and Josephine, and paternal grandmother Georgina. We begin in the middle of their conversation.

GEORGINA

”Geraldine has a long shift at the hotel today, the angel. Jack...”

GEORGE

”The rascal does this sometimes. Doesn’t come home for a good while.”

Wilkinson notes this and cross-references with principal Piker’s comment about Charlie’s father.

WILKINSON

”Off the record: does he spend these vacant periods selling drugs?”

GEORGINA

”Heavens no!”

Georgina puts a hand to her heart. Josephine jumps a little bit at the sudden movement. George tilts his head and squints suspiciously at Wilkinson.

GEORGE

”What if he were?”

GEORGINA

”George!”

GEORGE

”Oh, ethics this and ethics that. Say what you will, but when nobody was hiring, the Vermicious Knids provided. The best thing Jack has ever done for this family was their dirty business.”

GEORGINA

(Trying to steer things away)

”We cut ties with them after the arrest.”

GEORGE

”But even less people hire when there are drugs on your permanent record. So what if he was? What shame would there be in providing for his family?”

This sits in the air for a little bit. Wilkinson is not here to answer questions about the ethics of doing crime to provide for your family, and looks the appropriate amount of uncomfortable.

GEORGINA

”No. He is not doing... that. We do not know what, if we are being honest.”

**INT. Outside the old delivery bathroom.**

The Frau is walking. She’s looking for someone.

FRAU

”Schatz? Violet?”

It’s Violet. She’s looking for Violet.

She knocks on the bathroom door. When nobody says anything, the Frau checks the lock and sees that it’s unlocked. She opens the door.

The Frau has a sensitive nose. She has to, in order to make sausages. Meat can go bad at any moment. In this moment, we see the Frau realize that Violet’s been vomiting. Her face cycles through the five stages of grief for the poor girl, before settling on a fierce determination to get through to Violet. It’s never too late. It will be hard, but it’s never too late.

Behind a row of shelves, we see Violet peeking out between boxes. She pulls her mouth into a straight line. This will not be a fun conversation to have.

She sneaks away. The Frau can’t spew propaganda about how she needs to take care of herself if the Frau can’t find her.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Charlie is still leaned over the computer. In Mike’s absence, he’s made himself more comfortable, now half-lying next to the computer, head in his hand as he looks at the screen. He’s thinking about something.

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca is crawling forward inch by inch, phone in her hand.

VERUCA

”Bucket? Are you still with me?”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Charlie comes to.

CHARLIE

”Grandpa Joe told me about what you tried to do last night.”

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca’s eyes go wide.

VERUCA

”Oh. Uhm...”

She stops crawling, mind racing thinking of a response.

VERUCA

(Professional about it)

”Early in Louisa May Alcott’s masterpiece Little Women, the Marches have an overflow of food for Christmas dinner, and so-”

CHARLIE (OVER THE PHONE)

”You don’t have to explain.”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

VERUCA (OVER THE PHONE)

”Look, it’s not like I need the money. Not in the way you do, anyway. It doesn’t even have to be that much, just- god, my sense of value is warped beyond recognition. Just name a number, Bucket.”

Charlie listens to her, but he listens in the way one does when they know nothing they’re hearing changes anything.

CHARLIE

”We can’t take money. There’s always a caveat, or a contract, or a huge favor down the line.”

The sacks Jack Bucket used to wake up in the middle of the night to drop off at the nightclub weren’t just sacks. When Jack didn’t come home one night, it was because he’d been taken for drug dealing. All the money he’d risked jail time to make had gone towards keeping him out of it. The Buckets don’t talk about it, but they all know, and they’ve silently sworn to never, ever, take money for a favor again.

VERUCA (OVER THE PHONE)

”I don’t want to be paid back.”

It’s tempting, all their problems solved just like that, financial stability overnight. It would be so easy to believe her, owe nothing in return, and have a heated house in the winters.

Tempting, but Charlie can’t. Just thinking about saying yes makes him feel more pathetic than going hungry ever has.

CHARLIE

”And even without a caveat, you would always be the Person Who Gave Us Money. That would hang in the air every time we talk. You wouldn’t just be _you_ , you know? I don’t want that.”

**INT. The vents.**

”Every time we talk”. As if they’ll stay in touch when everything is over. Realistically, Veruca knows they won’t. Charlie definitely doesn’t own a phone, and connection is only fun until it falls apart, which it will, because nothing lasts forever, so why should she even try?

She needed to hear Charlie say that, though. Her heart aches, but she snaps herself back to reality.

VERUCA

”Maintaining a friendship with me is not worth going hungry.”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Growing up, the Bucket adults would always tell Charlie he was the luckiest boy in the world. Not because they had money - they most certainly did not - but because he had people he cared about.

There’s only so long a boy can be the luckiest in the world before he realizes that everything but luck is expensive.

CHARLIE

”You’re right.”

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca drags herself forward to have something else to focus on.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

CHARLIE

”But I want to?”

**INT. The vents.**

Charlie continues speaking, but the first sentence is what catches Veruca off-guard. Mid-drag, she bangs her head against the vent ceiling. A loud vibrating-metal sound reverberates through the ventilation shaft.

CHARLIE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Is that weird? To say? Yes. Yeah, that’s weird- no, I meant like, thanks for offering, but the offer happening is better- you know, like, actions speak a thousand words... damn, that’s not a proverb, is it? No. Oh my god that sounded painful are you okay?”

Veruca rubs her head. There is limited space to get her arm up there, but she manages.

VERUCA

”Short and simple, Bucket. I’m fine.”

We hear something other than the metal, now: the stomping of heavy boots, muffled but nearby. Veruca instantly mutes Charlie and leans close to the microphone.

VERUCA

(Whispering)

”Someone’s here.”

**INT. In the hallways.**

Camera pans down from the ventilation shaft, pinned to the ceiling of the hallway, onto a couple of Squirrel Masks standing underneath. One wields a flame thrower, the other a gun. They look up at the vent.

SQUIRREL MASK 1

”Did you hear that?”

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca does not move.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Charlie holds his breath.

**INT. In the hallways.**

The Squirrel Mask with the flame thrower raises it to poke at the vent, but can’t reach. The other gestures to his gun, as if to say ”should I shoot it?”, but the one with the flame thrower shakes his head.

SQUIRREL MASK 2

”Not our problem. Let’s get going.”

**INT. The vents.**

The footsteps grow distant and vanish. Veruca relaxes, places the phone in front of her, and runs both her hands over her forehead and through her hair in relief.

VERUCA

(Quiet)

”They’re gone now.”

She unmutes.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Charlie, who was about to cry, does not. He is more visually relieved than Veruca was.

CHARLIE

”Are you okay?”

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca looks at the phone. She smiles softly, going to say something sweet or flirty or both, maybe. Then she shuts her mouth and builds a layer of wall back up again.

VERUCA

”I will be once I get to this blasted loading area. Right turn next?”

**INT. Old delivery forklift.**

Violet, avoiding the Frau, climbs into the seat next to Mike, who gives her a greeting nod. Violet looks around to make absolutely sure that the Frau hasn’t somehow followed her before relaxing into her seat.

VIOLET

”All alone?”

MIKE

”You know, people keep pointing it out, thanks.”

VIOLET

”Was it not fun to - what was it you said, larp Al Powell from Die Hard?”

Mike takes his legs down from the steering wheel so he can face Violet when he says this.

MIKE

(Irritated)

”No, Charlie and Veruca were having a great time. I just couldn’t put up with it because every time Veruca says something he laughs and it’s like yeah, Charlie, we get you’re thirsty but can we keep this rated E for Everyone?”

VIOLET

(Thinking)

”They have been spending a lot of time together.”

MIKE

(Might as well be talking to himself)

”It’s like he only has eyes for her, and yeah, good that you’re vibing, someone has to tolerate her, but save an eyeball for the rest of us, you god damn simp.

Violet leans back in her seat and shakes her head.

VIOLET

(With a negative connotation)

”Veruca.”

MIKE

(Exhasparated)

”Veruca!”

VIOLET

”She keeps saying things like”

(Mimicking british accent)

’purple eyeshadow has to be made for somebody’ and ’you’ll be a viral success’.”

Mike rolls his eyes.

MIKE

”You can’t just say that, Veruca.”

VIOLET

”Right, like why would I want people to look at me when I look like this? I’m disgusting.”

MIKE

(Half-listening)

”Nah, you look better than Veruca. Completely different tiers.”

The compliment, though easily dismissed, takes Violet aback. This isn’t the Frau telling her to accept her body, this is someone else accepting her body. The smallest drop of validation feels like an ocean to a girl who’s lived her life trophy to trophy.

Mike isn’t even looking at her, too caught up in his thoughts on Charlie/Veruca to notice that his compliment hit something.

MIKE

”I don’t get why Charlie would be all over her, it’s like, does he like when people are mean, is that it? Does he like bitches? Does he want to be bossed around? Because in that case, it’s like,”

He pauses, thinking he needs to steer the conversation away from where he’s taking it, when he realizes what he said before that. Violet is right there and has really taken the compliment and wow if he-

He can’t take his mind in that direction, either.

MIKE

”You look good. Yeah, that’s what I’m saying. What are you gonna do about it?”

There’s a weird tension in the air, that of two teens who’ve simultaneously realized that maybe, just maybe, they don’t have to take care of their baggage if they just...

Violet leans over and kisses Mike.

Mike is hesitant, but as the seconds pass, he tallies the advantages and disadvantages and finds none. When Violet starts to pull away, he returns the kiss.

During the following makeout scene, _Cry About It Later_ by Katy Perry plays.

It’s a standard teen drama makeout scene. It keeps going until finally, Charlie arrives and sees his fellow teens making out in the forklift.

He clears his throat. Mike and Violet separate. Violet has a poker face. Mike looks incredibly smug.

CHARLIE

(Oh wow, okay)

”Oh, uh- I was just gonna say Veruca’s about to get to the loading bay if you wanted to be... in... on... that. I’ll just go? Yes. Yeah, I’ll just leave now. Have... fun?”

Mike smirks.

MIKE

(Smug)

”Jealous, gaylord?”

**INT. Wonka’s actual active loading bay.**

From high up, camera pans down and we see a warehouse, even larger then the old delivery bay. Although it’s currently out of commission, a couple of Squirrel masks patrol the grounds, about to walk past each other.

Down on the ground, the Squirrel Masks pass each other and stop to talk. It’s casual. Camera slowly zooms in and up between the two, showing us a vent grate high up on the wall, not unlike the one Veruca first crawled into.

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca lies on her stomach on the other side of the vent grate, face striped with light, looking intently down into the warehouse.

VERUCA

(Whisper)

”Hush. They’re talking.”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

We see, sitting in a row, Charlie, Mike, and Violet. Charlie has the computer in his lap. Mike is slightly leaned towards him, for computer reasons. Violet is also here, watching things happen.

MIKE

(Sarcastic)

”Riveting content. This was a great plan.”

Charlie puts a finger to his own mouth in a universal gesture to be quiet. Mike obliges, but he has more sarcasm to spend.

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

(Repeating back what they’re saying)

”’Sucks they left guard duty to us.’ ’Kinda glad they did, actually.’ ’The boss says we’ll get action if we keep waiting.’ So on, so on, so on... ’I can’t believe I’m missing karaoke night at Loompaland for this.’ Okay, that’s actual information- ’Maybe you can get drinks off or something.’ Et cetera, et cetera.”

As Veruca repeats, we see this:

Charlie is completely immersed in what Veruca is saying, tense in the way one is when one hopes for things to go well. Mike, who is leaned in for better view of a computer screen where nothing happens, regularly looks up at him from the computer - eyes only, so it isn’t visible.

Violet, in turn, is looking at Mike, because the two did just make out and she craves the validation. She moves her hand a little closer to him.

Mike turns his head back at her, sees the hand, and after the gears in his head turn, he takes it, gripping it hard and proud. They exchange a glance of... something. It’s awkward. Cute, maybe, depending on the viewer.

**INT. Wonka’s actual active loading bay.**

On the wall underneath the vent grate, a stationary phone rings. One of the Squirrel Masks shrugs and goes to take it.

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca is twisting her hair around her finger, immensely bored.

VERUCA

”And now they’ve stopped. Thrilling conversation. Truly the Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy of our time.”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

CHARLIE

”Hey, we know the other squirrels are somewhere else! That’s good, right?”

He turns to the other teens to include them in the conversation.

Mike smiles in the least suspicious way a teenage boy can smile and holds Violet’s hand like it’s a trophy. Violet has an excellent poker face and could feel pretty much anything about her hand being held.

Charlie thinks this pairing is kind of weird, to be honest, and goes back to the computer.

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”One of them is taking a call. Like, right below me. Let’s see.”

**INT. The vents.**

Through the grates, we see the Squirrel Mask pick up the phone. This is the angle Veruca would see him from, were she to press her face to the grate. He gestures when he talks, but we do not hear him. His movements slightly ahead of Veruca, who repeats everything he says.

VERUCA (OFF SCREEN)

(Bored repeating)

”’Yes, boss?’ ’Yes, they’re on their way.’ ’What?’ ’Yes, I’ll hang on.’ ’Right above me?’”

Veruca freezes.

VERUCA

”Bloody hell.”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Charlie goes very pale. Mike goes very ’wait, this shouldn’t be how it works’. Violet goes into full defensive mode, outgripping Mike in their hand holding.

CHARLIE

”Veruca? Veruca, are you okay?”

**INT. The vents.**

VERUCA

(Haha, I’m in danger)

”I’m sorry, what part of ’right above me’ sounds okay here?”

Through the grate, we see both the Squirrel Masks look up, right at the camera and by extension Veruca. The one who didn’t take the phone call goes to get a ladder.

VERUCA

”Charlie, thank you for checking up on me, love to hear it - one of these extremist Squirrel Nutkins is getting a ladder, though, which, correct me if I’m wrong, is bad?”

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

Charlie is not freaking out, but he wishes he could.

CHARLIE

”Yes. Yes, that’s bad.”

Mike lets go of Violet’s hand and grabs the computer off Charlie’s lap. In the process, he accidentally touches Charlie’s leg for like half a second and while Charlie does not take notice, Mike does. He just pretends nothing happened because what’s an accidental leg touch, bro to bro?

MIKE

”Okay, this is BS, there’s no way they could know you're up there.”

He begins typing.

Violet scoots slightly closer to look at the screen.

VIOLET

”Is the call bugged?”

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

(Genuine surprise + impending doom make a fun mix)

”Violet, my bluety, you’ve been here this whole time?”

Violet ignores her. Mike would intentionally ignore her, but he’s already programming, so he does not need to double down.

MIKE

”Wasn’t the last time I checked.”

VIOLET

”The coughing.”

MIKE

”The coughing happened before I set up the call. That’s a weird sound file or something.”

He inputs some code and switches between some tabs in an ambiguous yet cool way.

CHARLIE

”Crawl back? Like, get out? Fast?”

**INT. The vents.**

To Veruca’s credit, she’s trying to do just that, but there’s not room to turn around. She has to drag herself backwards. Her skirt was not made for this.

VERUCA

”If I die here, sell my mink coat. No time for pride, Bucket. Respect a dead girl’s wishes and make the money.”

In front of Veruca, the grate clatters as a ladder is placed against it.

**INT. Mike’s box fort.**

CHARLIE

”You’re not dying here, Veruca.”

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”Thanks for the encouragements. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Mike kicks a cardboard wall.

MIKE

”God damnit. Oh, you are going to hell, and when you do, I hope Satan teabags you.”

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”It feels good to have options, Michael Television, but that is threatening, and I have excellent lawyers.”

MIKE

”Not you, Salty Rick.”

(Trash talk)

”You absolute spawn camper, how the actual frick did you do this? It’s admirable, really. A masterclass in cheesing it.”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”Hello, Mike.”

Violet’s eyes glaze over at the very sound of his voice. Mike taps her hand to comfort her. It doesn’t do much, but to be fair, Mike is agitated.

MIKE

(Gamer trash talk)

”Kill yourself! It’ll get you to the dark lord sooner! Put a ’dejuicing bullet’ through your head. Dejuice your brain!”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE COMPUTER

”You just keep cracking my systems,don’t you, Mike! I need to invest in cybered security!”

Mike looks at Charlie. Willy’s presence has him messed up. He looks at Violet, who is regressing into state Mike has previously referred to as ’AFK’. Mike takes her hand again. He holds it wrong. He briefly glances at Charlie again. Charlie has not taken notice of this second holding of hands, which is fine, because it’s not like Mike wants him to see it or anything.

Mike makes an executive decision. He leans close to the computer microphone and speaks.

MIKE

(Clearly)

”Please commit die, and when you’re down there, tell your mom Mike says hi.”

He hangs up the call and closes the computer with a slam. Violet shakes herself to life, but can’t quite get the spark back. Mike audibly cracks his knuckles.

Charlie is just staring at him in disbelief.

MIKE

”What?”

Fade in _Telephone_ by Lady Gaga featuring Beyonce.

Charlie, freaking out, opens his mouth to shout something about just leaving Veruca there, but before sound can come out, we cut to:

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca, crawling backwards, has her phone screen go bright, showing off her lock screen: rose vines framing the text _’I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself - Charlotte Brontë’_. The call has ended.

She takes in the situation. She has been abandoned. Yeah, this might as well happen.

Fade down _Telephone_ for Veruca to speak.

VERUCA

(Low, determined, to herself)

”The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself.”

 _Telephone_ rises in volume again, just in time for the refrain to begin.

Just goes to show the only one Veruca can trust is herself.

The light is blocked as a Squirrel Mask climbs the ladder and begins screwing off the grate. In this moment, the mask itself, glaring at her through the bars with empty eyes, is legitimately scary.

Veruca sets her jaw, puts her phone away, and begins crawling backwards into the dark. End _Telephone_ at the cut.

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room, afternoon.**

We see the same setup as in the previous living room scene.

WILKINSON

”I hear tell one of you worked with Willy Wonka before the shutdown, thirty years ago.”

Georgina nods.

GEORGINA

”Dear Joe did. He went to the factory.”

WILKINSON

”I see.”

GEORGE

”One cannot get him to stop. I have tried. Ten years, I have tried.”

WILKINSON

”Well. That’s... inconvenient, considering.”

George scoffs.

GEORGE

”Oh, we have heard any story he might have a hundred times over. Ask him to tell a story or fill a silence, and it’s chocolate birds this and sugar balloons that.”

GEORGINA

”That one about when they were inventing a new flavor every day for a month is always a hoot.”

GEORGE

”If you’re looking for dirt on the Wonka family, he has a rather intricate story about when his old foreman started a union. Despicable working conditions, back in the day.”

Josephine, jittery and not all there, pipes up.

JOSEPHINE

”Cherry prince.”

George pats her hand carefully, happy she’s participating.

Wilkinson raises an eyebrow.

WILKINSON

”A cherry prince?”

GEORGINA

(Reciting)

”’He wasn’t an actual prince, mind you’...”

George rolls his eyes and joins in.

GEORGE AND GEORGINA

(Reciting)

”’We just called him that because the first time he ever visited, he wore a crown.’”

The elders all give each other knowing looks. Then, George clears his throat.

GEORGE

”Make yourself comfortable, young man. Let us tell you about mister Pondicherry, Wonka’s most enthusiastic investor.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The writers' room is a full time student, and appreciates your patience. Next episode will be something special, so stay tuned! There's a plan. Oh boy, if there's a plan.


	6. S1E6 - The amazing fantastical history of Willy Wonka

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the elders tell us about Joe's old factory days and Charlie faces the consequences.
> 
> Previously on Candyman:  
> Joe used to work for Willy Wonka Senior back in the day. The FBI agent Wilkinson visited Charlie's other grandparents, who were going to tell him a story about one of Willy Wonka Seniors former investors. Norman has been fixing up an old forklift, despite being a chemist. The Frau has been trying to support Violet after the loss of her mother and the gum malfunction, but has now discovered that Violet's been starving herself to get out of it. Mike and Violet are kind of a thing now, but Mike wants to hang out with Charlie, who spends most of his time with Veruca. Mike realized Willy was eavesdropping and hung up, leaving Veruca alone in the vents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for:  
> Worrying about money, fatphobia, tight spaces (vent crawling), guns, being hunted, hunger, fainting, toxic masculinity, internalized homophobia, Violet's eating disorder, mentions of Scarlett being a bad mom, disappearance, and a somewhat abstract description of an arm breaking.

**EXT. Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, day, thirty-two years ago.**

Song playing in the background: _The Candy Man_.

Establishing shot. These flashback scenes are tinted yellow, to signify that it was a happier time. The factory looks different, walls painted a bright purple with lime green chimneys and red fences. It’s smaller, missing several towers and a good chunk of the first floor. The camera slowly moves closer and closer to the factory, giving us an overview of what Wonka’s was like in it’s prime. Workers make pleasant conversation outside the open front door.

**INT. The mixing room, day, thirty-two years ago.**

_The Candy Man_ fades, but we still hear the whimsy instrumental as narration begins.

We see the mixing room: large vats of chocolate are stirred and maintained by diligent workers in light pink uniforms, overlooked by a tower in the center. Big floor-to-ceiling-windows brighten up the room, which would be industrial if not for many, many creative decorating choices.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”Pondicherry wasn’t an actual prince, mind you. They just called him that because the first time he visited, he wore a crown.”

The camera pans down from the tower - someone is sitting up there, but we only get the briefest glimpse of their back - and onto the floor. Standing in front of a vat, we see a figure turned away from the camera, hidden under a big yellow umbrella with spikes at the top, imitating a crown.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”Joe worked in the mixing room, back then. Every day, he would mix the chocolate to perfection under the orders of the foreman.”

Stirring a vat, we see YOUNGER JOE. He is played by Jack’s actor, in his thirties to forties, but is far more cleaned up than Jack. There’s a glow in his eyes. This man really enjoys his job.

His attention is suddenly drawn from his job as he looks down and sees something - the person with the umbrella.

A man climbs down from the tower and marshes up to the figure. This is ARLO HOFFA. Younger than Joe by a few years,tall and ethnically ambiguous, he looks a little bit too serious for someone working in a chocolate factory.

ARLO

(Stern)

”What are you doing?”

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”That foreman was Arlo Hoffa. Arlo was an excellent foreman, but he ran a tight ship, and a visitor in the mixing room was the last thing he needed.”

Reverse shot, and we see the person with the umbrella. Slowly, he turns around, revealing AGNI PONDICHERRY. Indian, wearing a power suit over a sun-printed button up, his sense of style is the kind of garish late-80’s fashion that the recent 80’s resurgence liked to quietly sweep under the rug.

PONDICHERRY

”I’m being mindful of splashing.”

Arlo furrows his brows at this.

PONDICHERRY

”Though, I am a bit disappointed. Everyone knows the best way to mix chocolate is to do it by waterfall, and I had expected that from an innovator such as Wonka.”

Joe laughs and almost loses his spoon to the chocolate whirlpool in front of him.

Arlo sighs and shakes his head.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”From the very first impression, the whole factory was convinced Pondicherry was a little bit insane. But he would not go until he could see mister Wonka, and so, Arlo obliged. When he went to get Wonka, you could hear the steam coming out of his ears.”

We see what she says recreated as she says it, ending on Arlo marching off out of the mixing room. We hear a steam sound effect and see faint CGI-steam come out of his ears as he walks. Joe’s stories are a little bit more fantastical than the real world.

**INT. Old delivery bay, present day.**

The screen is no longer flashback-tinted.

We pick up just moments after when we last saw the tour group. Everyone has gathered in the center of the warehouse. Violet has shut down. Charlie is pacing back and forth.

CHARLIE

”Hospital bills. How will we pay the hospital bills?”

NORMAN

”Ehm, we, don’t know what they know?”

Mike is hunched over his computer, sitting on the floor, tapping away like there’s no tomorrow.

MIKE

(Sarcastic)

”Great idea. Let’s just hang out here and maybe if our vibes are chill enough, the dungeon boss will sit down with us and offer us a relaxing cup of tea.”

Mike’s computer begins making a loud coughing noise. Mike instinctively mutes it and inputs a command, but not before the Frau can be understandably concerned.

FRAU

”Are you okay, Naseweis?”

MIKE

”Mentioned dungeon boss has _sound effects_ in his internal system. I don’t know why and I don’t want to. What I do want to know, old timer, is if you remember enough of this factory to take us anywhere else.”

JOE

”Yes, I suppose.”

Charlie stops his pacing to talk.

CHARLIE

”Mixing room. He worked the mixing room, mixed the chocolate, made it light and frothy, that’s the most mainstream room, that’s not gonna be a good hiding spot,”

Charlie is very good at handling pressure when he knows it’s coming. In his everyday life, pressure is predictable. It’s always about the money, and the money is always a rush to get ahold of, but at least he knows it’s coming, and at least he has time to prepare. When put on the spot, this is what happens instead.

He bounces on his heels, desperately trying to come up with something.

CHARLIE

”Stream, river, if he mixes via waterfall now, it’s probably shut down, right? Right? Oh, waterfall, I just got that, it’s from the thing, the cherry- dammit, Veruca is, is still up there, in there, we need to get her out-”

FRAU

”Breathe with me.”

The Frau does a breathing exercise with Charlie. Mike looks back at his computer once Charlie starts to calm down.

MIKE

”Mixing room? We can work with that.”

Violet eyes the Frau. There’s something painful about watching her doing the breathing exercise. Not jealousy. It’s knowing the Frau genuinely wants to make people feel better, and it’s knowing that it will never work on Violet herself.

Because the Frau spews body positivity propaganda. Says things that would make Scarlett see red.

Violet decides to sit with Mike, who actually does make her feel better about her body. As she steps forward, she feels the world go dizzy. Black spots dance across her vision. She carefully sits down, leaning over Mike’s shoulders as he codes and pretending everything is fine.

MIKE

(Under his breath)

”Hanging in there? Staying by the keyboard?”

VIOLET

”Mhm.”

The interaction is weirdly stilted, because Violet is a non-affectionate person trying to affectionate and Mike adresses her kind of like you would adress a five year old who wants to show you their room.

It is, however, interrupted by the loud sound of an engine being turned on.

Headlights ablaze, the previously dead forklift drives up, making a whirring sound. Sitting in the drivers seat - because Willy Wonka’s forklifts have two seats for some reason - is Norman.

Norman drives past the tour group, but he only watches his son. Mike isn’t awestruck, but he’s impressed enough that it works, and that’s enough for Norman. Mike has Violet over his shoulder, too. Doris will be proud.

The forklift slows down next to the group.

NORMAN

”Time to man up, right?”

The Teavees exchange a knowing look. Mike did get his smarts from someone, after all.

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca crawls backwards through a dark vent shaft.

This is the worst day of her life. Her hair is a mess, she’s not sure there’s a cleaner in the whole wide world that can get this much dust and dirt out of charmeuse, and oh, yeah: she has been left to die.

**INT. The hallways.**

We see the vent, pressed toward the ceiling.

Panning down, we see two people in squirrel masks. One, wearing a purple mask, carries himself casually. The other, wearing a green mask, is alert. He wields a gun, and he’s ready to use it.

GREEN SQUIRREL

”You still in there?”

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca bites the inside of her cheek to keep quiet.

**INT. The hallways.**

After a beat, the Green Squirrel Mask cocks his gun and shoots the vent. It takes two seconds.

**INT. The vents.**

There’s a loud bang. Veruca can’t help but scream.

She scrambles to turn on her phone flash light and looks herself over as best she can first. The gunshot rings in her ears, muffling all noise around her. In the background, the Squirrel Masks are talking, but we can’t make out what.

The flashlight lands on an indent in the sheet metal right in front of Veruca. It’s missed her by a half a millimeter of metal.

The ringing quiets down enough for us to hear the Squirrel Masks speak.

PURPLE SQUIRREL (IN THE BACKGROUND)

”We don’t want this any more than you do, kiddo, but you can’t stay in there forever. Come out, and we’ll make it easy on you.”

Veruca chokes back tears, forces herself to stop shaking, and crawls backwards another step. And then another. This is not where she dies. This cannot be where she dies.

GREEN SQUIRREL (IN THE BACKGROUND)

”Suit yourself.”

PURPLE SQUIRREL (IN THE BACKGROUND)

”It’s just business, kiddo.”

Veruca represses the urge to scream and keeps crawling.

**INT. The hallways.**

Charlie, Joe, Mike, Violet, and the Frau are sneaking down a hallway, pressed to one side as if they’ll magically blend in if someone walks by. At the front of the group, Mike carries an open computer with a map on it, while Joe looks around trying to remember if he’s been there before.

Violet walks in the middle of the group, next to the Frau, who is keeping it together, and Charlie, who isn’t. He paces back and forth while also walking forward, taking three or four steps for every foot he needs to walk. Logically, Violet knows it’s the sugar. Charlie doesn’t seem like the kind of person who can handle a sugar rush.

CHARLIE

(Sugar rush)

”Veruca’s still in the vents. Veruca’s still in the vents. What if they got to her? What if she’s dead, and I’ll just never know?”

Violet hasn’t eaten nearly as much candy as he has. Meaningless calories, and all that. She yawns.

MIKE

”Mute the mic. You’ll get us caught.”

Mike whips around to say it and the movement is too much for Violet to look at. The world spins a little bit. She puts a hand to the wall and keeps walking, making herself small so the Frau won’t notice.

CHARLIE

(Sugar rush)

”Why did we have to hang up on her?We didn’t even say goodbye. You didn’t even warn her.”

The Frau does notice, and gives Violet a kind smile. She’s worried, though. Violet can see it in her eyes. If she manages to get Violet alone, she’ll try to talk about Violet’s methods. Call it an ”eating disorder”. It’s not. She threw up once, in a moment of weakness. And not eating is just not eating - if you have to eat three whole meals a day every day to be normal, Violet’s had an eating disorder her whole life.

She will do anything to avoid talking about it.

MIKE

”My scrub father is not nyooming around the factory as a distraction for you to start catching feelings. Straighten out your stuff, or I will.”

The Frau frowns at Mike’s aggression. Violet watches her in silence. Is that the best she can do? Stand to the side and let it happen? Scarlett didn’t. Scarlett told Violet to spit out the gum and Scarlett punished Violet for chewing it. She did something. She took action.

CHARLIE

(Sugar rush)

”She’s alone. She’s alone, and there’s nothing I can do to help.”

The Frau gently steps in front of him and motions for him to take deep breaths. He does.

FRAU

”Relax, Shokoladenherz. Leave the church in the village.”

Joe, a good bit ahead of everyone else, turns towards the rest of the group and tilts his head.

JOE

”That’s a strange idiom, Frau Gloop.”

The Frau perks up, briefly smiling at Violet again to make her feel included. Violet does not want to feel included.

FRAU

”Oh? How do you say it in America?”

CHARLIE

”I couldn’t help Augustus, either. Dammit, why didn’t I go with him? I’m just letting everything happen,”

Charlie blinks back tears. Over Augustus, Violet guesses. Violet never even said a word to Augustus, because he was the token fat kid. Violet doesn’t think he deserves to be missed.

CHARLIE

(To the Frau)

”I’m so sorry, this is all my fault.”

The Frau carefully pats his shoulder. She’s somber. Her cheeks have taken on a deep red flush. Violet thinks she’s probably an ugly crier. Of course she is. Why wouldn’t she be? And if anything, Augustus’ disappearance is her fault. She wasn’t strict enough. Wasn’t rigid enough. Heard her child ask to do something and let him do it, like the coddler she is.

Violet’s thoughts are angry and small. Her head feels stuffed with cotton and then blow torched. This, she knows, means her attempts at fixing her body are starting to sink in. This, she can handle.

JOE

(Comforting)

”Don’t get ahead of yourself, my boy.”

FRAU

(Cheering up for the sake of the group)

”Yes, that’s it!”

MIKE

(Cheering down for the sake of the group)

”For the love of hell, shut up!”

And then, we hear the audio go muffled as Violet’s vision blurs.

She buckles and tries to steady herself, but with her head foggy, she forgets for just a moment that her body isn’t that perfect stick-thin homecoming queen body she’s used to steadying. Her weight gets the best of her and she collapses to the floor.

From directly above, move the camera up and farther away from Violet. Sound is muffled as the Frau immediately ducks down on her knees to check if Violet is okay. Joe gets closer and gives her advice for how to check. Mike stops and shuts his computer, but doesn’t get closer. Charlie loses what little composure he just earned himself.

Then, fade to black.

**INT. The mixing room, day, thirty-two years ago.**

Beginning on a dark screen, the camera moves away from the dark back of Arlo’s watchtower and to the side, showing us the mixing room from high up.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”Visitors were uncommon in the factory. This was before the spies started dropping in. It was not closed to the public, but it was still a place of work.”

A small crowd has built up around Pondicherry. Arlo makes his way through it, clearing a path behind him and waving for people to get in orderly lines. They obey.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”Word traveled fast. Everyone had their own theory about what Pondicherry was doing there when Arlo finally got Wonka down to the mixing room.”

Walking down the path Arlo has cleared, we see WILLY WONKA SENIOR. He is played by the younger Wonka’s actor, and looks exactly the same, down to the candy red suit and shamrock bow tie. If anything, his hair isn’t as modern, but other than that, they might as well be the same person.

He shakes hand with Pondicherry as the whole room watches. Arlo inaudibly scoffs at them to get back to work, and Willy motions for Arlo to calm down.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”This is what Pondicherry said:”

PONDICHERRY

”I’ve come to invest.”

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”What for?”

PONDICHERRY

”I think the Wonka brand could be everlasting, with the right help.”

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”Are you the right help?”

PONDICHERRY

”Why wouldn’t I be?”

Still gripping each other’s hands, the two make eye contact and smile at the same time, like they’ve read each other’s minds and both found something very funny.

In the background, Arlo looks like he dreads what’s coming.

Joe, by his vat, just looks fascinated by the two men.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”From then on, Pondicherry was as common a sight around the factory as Willy Wonka himself.”

Later, outside, we see workers unload a limousine and carry several expensive-looking bags into the factory as Pondicherry and Willy Wonka senior overlook them, lost in conversation.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”He was very wealthy, you see. He had nowhere to put his riches, and the two things he loved more than anything else were chocolate and good ideas. Both of which Wonka could provide.”

We see the two men back in the mixing room. Pondicherry scoops a ladle of chocolate out of a vat and tastes as WillyWonka Senior watches. Pondicherry nods, and then gives an inaudible suggestion. Willy raises an eyebrow, interested in whatever Pondicherry said.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”Wonka did some of his best work with Pondicherry at his side.”

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”Like the ice cream that would stay cold in the sun.”

We see the two men out in the yard in front of the factory. Willy Wonka Senior has a welding mask and a blowtorch. Pondicherry stands by and watches as Willy puts on the mask and blowtorches a metal bucket of ice cream. After a few seconds, he turns the blowtorch off. Pondicherry carefully sticks his hand in the bucket. The ice cream is barely melted. Pondicherry gives a thumbs up.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”Or the gum that never lost flavor.”

We see the two men at a desk in the inventing lab. Willy Wonka Senior flips an hour glass. Pondicherry, who is chewing gum, nods, and Willy marks another line on a chalkboard already chock-full with lines.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”Strangest of all, though, were the message Squirrels.”

We see Arlo sour as a squirrel clambers up his tower, note strapped to it’s back. Arlo takes and reads the note, all the while the squirrel stays, staring as if it’s waiting for something. Arlo looks up and, after trying to gauge the squirrel’s motives, pulls a bag of cocoa beans out of his pocket. He offers one to the squirrel. The squirrel sneers and slaps Arlo before clambering right back down.

ARLO

(Loud)

”I need someone to take a message to the boss.”

He looks down into the mixing room and picks a vat at random.

ARLO

”Bucket and Pottle, you go.”

Joe looks up, confused, as does a woman working on the other end of the vat.

ARLO

”Your time will be paid out of pocket. Take this down.”

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”So Joe did.”

**INT. The mixing room, lunch break corner, afternoon, present day.**

FRAU

”Easy, schatz, easy.”

Violet lies on a bench attached to the wall. Above her, there are coat hooks. This is where workers would’ve sat down to take breaks, back in the day. The Frau is leaned over her. Mike sits at her feet, concerned.

VIOLET

”Where are we?”

MIKE

”Joe, the real MVP, got us to his old workroom. Legend.”

He points to Joe, who is lifting a tarp to see what’s underneath. In the background, Charlie is on a personal quest to look at everything. This is the room. This is where Joe’s work stories took place.

Some time during the past thirty-two years, the mixing room stopped being used. Gaps of light peek through the boarded up industrial windows. Several vats are missing, while others are covered in big orange tarps. Arlo Hoffa’s old watchtower has been taken down completely.

Joe takes it all in before turning back to the group.

JOE

(Humble)

”Oh, I do not know about that.”

MIKE

”You’re a champion, Joe! You’re based!”

Violet tries to sit up but immediately gets nauseous. The Frau eases her down onto the bench again. There’s something soft under her head. It’s the Frau’s coat, folded up to keep Violet’s head raised. Violet moves the coat away out of principle.

VIOLET

”Your dad?”

Mike stretches and shrugs.

MIKE

”Hasn’t caught up yet.”

FRAU

”Let’s give her some space.”

Mike ignores the Frau and crouches next to the bench to talk to Violet.

MIKE

”But like, there’s nothing stealth about a forklift.”

**INT. The hallways.**

MIKE (CONTINUED, VOICEOVER)

”He’s probably just figuring out somewhere to put it.”

From Mike’s line, fade into _Is Everybody Going Crazy?_ by Nothing But Thieves.

Norman drives the forklift through the hallways, going as fast as he can.

A squadron of Squirrel Masks run after him.

It’s shot in a way that distracts from the fact that this is a stupid distraction and an even stupider situation. Lots of close ups on wheels and running boots. Maybe a single close up on Norman driving the fork lift.

Norman is scared, but he’s doing it anyway - and by it, he means distracting the Squirrel Masks so everyone else can relocate. He doesn’t know if they’re safe yet. He doesn’t know if he’ll be able to get away when they are.

He looks over his shoulder for a second. The Squirrel Masks are coming at him. At least one of them has a gun.

Unbeknownst to the rest of the group, Norman has a plan. He may not be an inspiration to Mike, but Mike is an inspiration to him. If there’s a time to take charge, it’s now.

End _Is Everybody Going Crazy?_ at the cut.

**INT. The mixing room, by the window, afternoon.**

Mike sits on the floor by the boarded up windows, leaned against the wall. A distance away, Charlie stands, forehead to a board, looking through a gap.

CHARLIE

”My mom is right over there.”

Mike puts aside the computer and looks through another gap.

Outside, below the factory, a small crowd waits in front of the gates, some still wielding signs, others passing around thermoses and snack bags as they wait for any sign of activity.

MIKE

”In the crowd?”

CHARLIE

”No, up. At the Earth Hotel. She’ll be folding towels right about now.”

The Earth Hotel is a tall building in the distance. It only really sticks out because of the big round sign on the side of the wall, reading EARTH HOTEL over a cartoonish picture of the earth.

Mike stops looking. Charlie does not. He stares out the window and the more he stares, the heavier he looks, like Atlas struggling to hold up the sky.

CHARLIE

”The Earth Hotel is this town’s greatest money maker, you know? It gets new money in circulation. Tourists come to watch the factory.”

He laughs weakly.

CHARLIE

”I used to take people around the rim and tell them grandpa Joe’s factory stories. Three dollars per person. If I were down there now I bet I could get away with ten.”

Three dollars buys flour, or string beans, or something to thicken the soup. Even before Charlie understood how bad things were, he did the tours. To cheer up his mom, mostly.

CHARLIE

”When we get out, the tourism industry will die. That means hard times. That means layoffs at the Earth Hotel.”

Because she really does slave away, Geraldine Bucket. She’s supported the household herself for years, always refusing Charlie’s job money at first offer. She’s going to kick the bucket before the elders do. Charlie can feel it.

CHARLIE

”If we never leave, we’ll be a mystery. More tourism. They’ll raise mom’s wages. Businesses will start hiring again.”

The whole family depends on the Earth Hotel job, so by extension, the whole family depends on the Earth Hotel, and the Earth Hotel depends on tourism, and tourism depends on Willy Wonka’s reputation. It’s dominos. One falls, and the rest will follow.

So maybe it’s for the best if they get caught.

Charlie pushes himself off of the planks. His forehead has an indent where the plank used to be.

CHARLIE

”Sorry. I’m being a downer.”

Mike has been watching him intently this whole time.

MIKE

”Nah. You’re coming down from a sugar rush, idiot.”

CHARLIE

(Sugar low)

”Oh.”

Having grown up on only one chocolate bar per year and having stretched that 185 gram chocolate bar across six months, Charlie has never had a sugar rush before. He’s also never had a sugar low before.

Now knowing this is how he gets on sugar, he never wants to have a sugar rush again.

Mike smiles teasingly.

MIKE

”What, do you not eat snacks? Are you a health nut? Too good for Grüberdrink? Because let me tell you, nobody is too good for Grüberdrink. The original sin was eating an apple, but that apple was washed down with a tall glass of radioactive magenta pop.”

CHARLIE

(Dodging the question)

”We’re not a Fickelgrüber family.”

Mike tsk’s and shakes his head. Not to show he’s disappointed, but to show Charlie’s been missing out.

CHARLIE

(Worried)

”Dammit, Veruca’s still in the vents. She might be hurt.”

MIKE

(Not worried)

”Bro code. Blink twice if that bitch has a gun to your soft boy-next-door heart and is gonna fire unless you pretend she’s the G.O.A.T.”

He mimics firing a finger gun at Charlie. Charlie watches, unamused.

CHARLIE

”Again, you’re also kind of a bitch.”

MIKE

”It’s different when you want to mack on her, lover boy. You don’t want to tap this, do you?”

Mike poses where he sits, as a joke. Mostly.

Charlie sighs and runs a hand through his hair. When he snaps, it’s just as much the sugar as it is Charlie himself. He does not have the energy for this right now.

CHARLIE

”Shut up? She’s my friend? And I don’t like when people talk bad about my friends? Like you also did about Augustus? You just keep putting down people I care about?”

A beat. Mike stops posing.

MIKE

(Trying to shake it off)

”Dang. Charisma 100. I’m sorry.”

CHARLIE

(Will not be shaken off)

”It’s not me you need to apologize to, Mike!”

Mike picks up his computer again and places it in his lap. When he speaks, he makes a point of not making eye contact.

MIKE

(Fast)

”Look, no need to have a heated simp moment. I’ll set up a call, and you can check on her, okay? See? I can be nice sometimes.”

Mike is already typing. Charlie looks at him and then sits down next to him, remorseful in a way he knows he probably shouldn’t be.

Whenever Charlie tells someone off, it’s fueled by his own personal stress. It’s that he thought this would be a fun one-day trip. It’s that grandpa George really convinced him to keep the golden ticket. It’s that no rescue attempts have been made in five days.

CHARLIE

(Sugar low)

”It’s just... been five days.”

Mike looks up from the computer to answer.

MIKE

”People have gotten crushes in shorter.”

Mike says it more genuinely than he’s said anything else so far. Charlie has to think for a second.

CHARLIE

”Oh, because you’ve got a thing with Violet.”

Mike blinks. Then, he returns to the computer, pasting on a confident grin.

MIKE

(Straight)

”Yeah. Because I, Mike Teavee, ’ve got a thing with Violet. Not that I’m into that side of the internet, but the blueberry thing is kinda hot. Solid waifu material.”

**INT. The mixing room, lunch break corner, afternoon.**

When Violet tries to sit up again, the Frau is at her side, gently helping her up to stop the blood rushing to her head too quickly.

When Violet tries to get off her improvised bed, the Frau puts a careful hand on her shoulder to keep her sitting and rummages through her handbag.

FRAU

”Nein, nein. You passed out from a lack of energy, schatz. You need to eat something first.”

Right then, right there, every frustration Violet has had about the Frau, every little grain of internalized fatphobia and disgust, culminates. She can’t even remember the last time she hated someone, but right now, she’s pretty sure she feels it. Her head feels numb and small and strained and the only sound that wouldn’t sound grating to her right now is the loud and clear sound of something breaking.

VIOLET

”I don’t need to take advice from some fat cow.”

The Frau stops. Looks up. Blinks. Puts on a light, slightly stressed smile as she realizes that Violet just said something rude.

FRAU

”Schatz, this is the hunger speaking.”

Violet gets up. Her legs are immediately unsteady, shivering with every step.

VIOLET

”No, it isn’t. You don’t know me, you don’t know what I’m like when I’m hungry, so stop acting like you do.”

FRAU

”Schatz, you’re shaking.”

VIOLET

”So what if I am?”

FRAU

”Your body needs fuel to regulate your emotions.”

VIOLET

”My body needs to lose half its total weight.”

The Frau rises as well, careful and unintimidating.

FRAU

”You are worthy of respect no matter what you look like. You need to take care of yourself. You need to eat.”

VIOLET

”Eat what? Candy? Empty calories, who’ll only make me fatter and be out of my system in an hour?”

The Frau steps closer.

FRAU

”Schatz, you have a problem.”

VIOLET

”I have many problems, the least of which is whether I’m eating or not.”

Violet strains her eyes to hold back a tear. Her cheeks are flushed a deep purple. When she speaks, she begins slowly and clearly to stop herself from slurring a word and then losing it completely. If she can fight the hunger feelings, she will.

VIOLET

(Slowly but surely breaking down)

”Scarlett is dead. I have nowhere to go now, but knowing my luck, I’ll be placed with some chubby agnostic foster couple who just can’t wait to show off their new Blueberry Girl to all the neighbors but then laugh about me when they think I’m asleep. You keep trying to sneak life lessons about ’body positivity’ or whatever into every conversation you start with me. I’m sure this is difficult to understand, but some people are fine without three meals a day plus dessert. Body positivity is for obese adults who haven’t lost a pound since prom night.”

This is the most Violet has said since the tour began. It’s said in gulps and hiccups and shivers, Violet’s consciousness fighting against every impulse her body sends her brain. If she had gum, this wouldn’t happen. The gum tricks her into thinking she’s full. With gum, she can run on minimal energy for weeks and still fit into the gowns her mother wants her to wear for special events. With gum, she can smile politely and laugh at the right times and ignore the void in her stomach, the pains jabbing at her near-nonexistent body fat as her body tries to warn her about hunger she doesn’t feel.

VIOLET

(Broken)

”I am not supposed to look like this. You cannot tell me I should be happy with my body when this _isn’t it_. This is a sick experiment. I have every right to want to get rid of it, and if I have to starve myself to the brink of death, so be it.”

Needless to say, the audience needs to know that you should never starve yourself, especially not to the brink of death. Be critical. Take care of yourself.

The Frau looks incredibly sad for Violet. Violet wants none of it.

FRAU

”This is your mother speaking, is it not?”

Yes, of course it is.

When Scarlett tells her it’s too late to eat something, gum will cover it. Of course, the gum serves its purpose in other ways. Scarlett is nothing if not opportunistic, and everything about Violet exists to be shown off. Without the publicity, the trophy money, the validation from total strangers, Violet is useless to Scarlett. And if not even Scarlett can make something out of her, what is she good for?

The Frau reaches out a hand to put gently on Violet’s shoulder. Violet recoils, knocking into the vat behind her and having to put a hand against it to steady herself.

VIOLET

”Don’t touch me.”

The Frau puts down her hand.

FRAU

”Whatever she taught you, I’m sorry.”

Violet presses her hand to the vat like she’s might flip it over and trap the Frau inside. After a beat, she realizes the Frau isn’t going to come closer and leaves.

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca is still crawling through the vents. Her hair is tangled and filled with dust, but she’s determined, and that’s what counts. She uses her phone flashlight to light up the vent in front of her.

The phone rings. The ringtone is _Everybody Talks_ by Neon Trees. Veruca forces herself to get herself together, just to keep her dignity: she sets her jaw, wipes her tears, and picks up. Mike isn’t just going to get a piece of her mind, he’s going to get a chunk.

VERUCA

”Wow. What an honor to finally be worthy of your valuable computer time.”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE PHONE)

”Thanks, Veruca!”

Veruca’s face falls.

VERUCA

(Not in the mood)

”You’re welcome.”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE PHONE)

”You know what would be so ’fire’? If you gave up!”

VERUCA

”You know what would be so fire? If you stopped killing your house guests.”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE PHONE)

”The candy making process is a peculiar one!”

Veruca pauses. She stops crawling just to process the comment, face twisting in confusion and anger.

VERUCA

(Basically spitting it)

”Did you turn Augustus Gloop into _fudge_? What does that even mean?”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE PHONE)

”I’ll never tell.”

Veruca rubs her temples. Her fingers come away dusty. She blows the dust away.

VERUCA

”This is a terrible business plan.”

When Rupert Salt would take Veruca to the office to teach her the family trade, she never paid much attention. Now, realizing that her dad’s death was ordered by a man who doesn’t even have a brand manager, she wishes she had.

VERUCA

”Yes, you’ll have immortalized yourself. Nobody will ever forget your name, because you’ll be one of the great serial killers of the modern era. If that’s what you want, great!”

She should have savored those moments. Who did she think she was protecting by distancing herself?

Veruca strains her eyes to keep from crying.

VERUCA

”But from one heiress to another, this company will not last a week afterwards. Your stocks will plummet. Stores will toss your precious candy by the box. There’s no money in this.”

The phone is silent. She needed this, she thinks. A refresher on who the enemy is. If her only option is death, the least she can do is put up a fight, and criticizing this hyper-energetic killer is the easiest way to do that.

VERUCA

”Why make it so public? Why put your real face in a commercial? Why use your own factory?”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE PHONE)

”You’ll find out soon enough!”

VERUCA

”Wow, ominous. I can’t believe my life is being threatened by a man with a goatee. The self proclaimed candy man can take a sunrise and sprinkle it with dew but he can’t take a razor and update the Candyman™ look. It’s not the nineties anymore, Dorian Gray.”

Veruca’s phone lights up. The call has ended. Veruca drops the poker face and keeps crawling.

**INT. The mixing room, by the window, late afternoon.**

Song playing over this scene: _I Like (The Idea Of) You_ by Tessa Violet.

Mike sits by the window on his computer, coding like he’s never done anything else. He focuses intensely on the code, because right now, he’d like to avoid thinking.

Mike is a man of logic and reasoning. Mike knows that chocolate releases endorphins, and he also knows that his diet for the past few days has been mostly chocolate. So when Charlie pulls a hand through his teen heartthrob hair, or tells Mike off, or is nicer to Mike than he really should be, it’s the chocolate’s fault that Mike feels the occasional butterfly. It has nothing to do with Mike himself.

In the distance, Charlie is talking to Joe. Mike looks up and instantly looks back down. It’s only weird if he makes it weird.

Mike is not a weakling. He is not gay. He can’t be gay. It’s the chocolate. It’s the god damn chocolate.

What is Charlie doing, though?

One brief look. Charlie is being shown around by Joe. Joe shows him a vat. Charlie, still low from the sugar, is still excited. Mike doesn’t think Charlie knows how cute he really is. There’s something innately practical about how Charlie moves and dresses, and really, that makes him even cuter,

Mike looks back down. He stops typing and closes a fist around his other wrist, squeezing so hard his arm starts shaking. It reorients him. Refocuses him. Mike is strong. He is not gay.

One last look, and then he’ll cancel it out with a bigger demonstration of strength. Just a perfectly normal look at your bro, only weird because of the chocolate.

But as he looks up, Violet is in the foreground, heading for him.

Violet’s eyes are stormy and her steps are determined and she wraps herself around Mike before he can even say hi to her, initiating another classic teen drama makeout scene. Once again, Mike takes a couple seconds to register that this is happening before kissing back.

In the distance. Mike catches a glimpse of Charlie. Letting Joe speak, smiling even though he’s clearly sad about something. For just a second, there’s something in Mike’s eyes as well - regret, maybe? Just a second. Then he leans into the makeout scene.

See? Mike likes girls. How else could this be happening?

End music at the cut.

**INT. Wonka’s office, day, thirty-two years ago.**

Young Joe and Pottle climb up the last of a set of stairs. From their exhaustion, we can tell there were a lot of stairs.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”Joe and his coworker Pottle went all the way up to Wonka’s office in the tallest tower to deliver the message. When they finally reached the door, they found it was already unlocked.”

We follow the camera in through the gap in the door. Willy Wonka’s office has yellow walls and a big window at the back, leading out onto a small balcony. One wall is completely covered by cork boards, filled with candy sketches and scientific formulas and extensive notes.

Willy Wonka Senior and Pondicherry are standing in the middle of the room, engaged in a passionate discussion.

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”It’s genius! But theoretically impossible!”

Pondicherry puts a hand on Willy’s upper arm.

PONDICHERRY

”Like ice cream that never gets warm was impossible. The Wonka brand can last forever, and it will last forever when-”

At the same time, the two men look to the camera.

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”Yes?”

Reverse shot. Joe and Pottle stand in the doorway, looking nervous.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”They stepped inside to bring Arlo’s message.”

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”Arlo once challenged Wonka to a game of gumdrop Othello in order to extend his worker’s lunch breaks. Wonka, in return, lengthened Arlo’s hours something ridiculous.”

We see Arlo and Willy Wonka Senior even further back in time, sitting in that same office on either side of the window. In front of them, red and green gumdrops are laid out on a board. Arlo triumphantly places a green gumdrops and flips a full portion of gumdrops. Willy sighs. When Arlo hands him a legal document, he signs it in defeat.

We see Arlo dismiss his workers at the end of the day and go to leave himself, only to be stopped by Willy. Willy hands him a mop and Arlo instantly starts mopping.

In the foreground, young Joe looks back at his bosses, one thoroughly cleaning the floor as the other watches, an imposing figure despite being the shorter one of the two.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”Arlo was as loyal as he was critical. Joe likes to describe their working relationship as a well-intentioned power struggle.”

We return to the office thirty-two years ago. Minutes have passed since Joe and Pottle stepped into the office. Willy sits in a tall chair behind a desk, Pondicherry next to him. Pottle and Joe stand in front of the desk, backs to the camera. Pottle is speaking.

POTTLE

”The squirrels have started causing allergies, they’re a hygiene issue, and having to keep nuts in our mixing room means everything we produce must be re-packaged to warn the general public that it may contain nuts. They are detrimental to both business and working conditions.”

JOE

”Hoffa would like it if we tried alternative ways of internal communication.”

Pondicherry looks at Willy.

PONDICHERRY

(Low, to Willy)

”I like the squirrels.”

Willy bounces out of his chair and leans over the desk.

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”Well! Let’s go check in with dear Hoffa, shall we?”

**INT. The mixing room, day, thirty-two years ago.**

We see the mixing room. The workers have left their stations and gathered around Willy Wonka Senior and Pondicherry, who are positioned to announce something. Behind them, Joe and Pottle are not with the rest of the crowd. This makes them nervous. At the front of the crowd, Arlo stands with arms crossed.

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

(Theatrical)

”Everyone, your boss has complaints about the squirrels!”

Arlo rolls his eyes.

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”Here’s what we have to say about that:”

PONDICHERRY

”Time is like a river of chocolate: sweet, but runs too fast.”

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”Miss Pottle, collect your things. You’re a bad nut.”

Willy raises his arms above his head. The workers, including Joe, follow. On his cue, they clap twice and say the words, as is customary when someone is fired. None of the workers want to do this. Joe definitely doesn’t. He watches Pottle, unsure if he should be happy he’s the one keeping his job or sad Pottle is the one losing hers.

THE WORKERS

(In unison)

”Bad nut.”

Willy motions for the crowd to disperse. They do. Pottle is left standing in total disbelief. Joe pats her on the shoulder, but it doesn’t help.

Arlo storms up to Willy.

ARLO

”Boss, these people need jobs.”

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”So stay in line.”

Pondicherry nudges Willy, indicating Joe, who is still standing by. Willy scoffs and moves the conversation further away.

PONDICHERRY

(Whispering)

”There are some things far worse than just standing by.”

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

(Whispering)

”I couldn’t have said it better myself, dear Agni.”

There’s very clearly something implied here that only they know about. Arlo takes a beat, and then appears to give up, nodding obediently. He gives Joe a ”go back to work”-look over Pondicherry’s shoulder.

Joe goes to get his stirring equipment. Pottle walks past him, a bag slung over her shoulder.

**INT. The hallways, present day.**

Reprise on _Is Everybody Going Crazy?_ , starting from the guitar interlude.

The forklift hits a dead end.

Norman stops the vehicle and just looks at the wall, taking in his fate.

Behind the forklift, the Squirrel Masks stop running. They pull out their guns and slowly approach.

Norman sees them in the rear view mirror and swallows.

He steps out, hands raised. These are the longest seconds of Norman’s life. He can hear his own breathing, loud and heavy.

Lower music for when Norman speaks.

NORMAN

”Wait.”

If the Squirrel Masks have a reaction, we can’t see it. They don’t shoot.

NORMAN

”I need to speak to mister Wonka.”

Raise the music again. End on one final line during the last shot of the scene.

The Squirrel Masks exchange looks.

**INT. The vents.**

Once again, we hear the opening bars of _Everybody Talks_. Veruca’s phone is ringing.

Veruca has only grown dustier and more miserable, but there’s something routine about the vent crawling, now. She dusts off her phone and picks up.

VERUCA

(Bitch mode)

”You know, your daddy issues really have to run deep for you to replicate his whole look.”

**INT. The mixing room, by the window, sunset.**

Close up on Mike, sitting hunched over his computer. Violet hangs over his shoulders, chin on one and arm over the other.

MIKE

”I don’t look like that much of a wimp, Rick.”

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca sighs deeply.

VERUCA

”Television. What an honor.”

CHARLIE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Veruca! Are you okay?”

Charlie’s presence makes her feel a little better, but she still doesn’t feel good. The metal walls are starting to feel closer. Whenever she crawls over a grate, the light makes her eyes hurt. She can no longer feel the dust in her throat.

Veruca draws a frowny face on the dusty metal in front of her.

VERUCA

”Decidedly not.”

**INT. The mixing room, by the window, sunset.**

Charlie takes the computer from Mike. Mike notices how Charlie’s fingers just barely brush Mike’s legs when he takes the computer, but it’s not because he likes the boy. He’s just aware. Mike is straight.

Charlie is focused on Veruca and the computer and wouldn’t know he brushed Mike’s legs if he got playback footage of it happening.

CHARLIE

”Can I help?”

VERUCA (OVER THE PHONE)

”I’m being followed. I’m being eavesdropped on. We stan a knight in shining armor but there’s not a lot you can do here, Prince Charming.”

Charlie tries to come up with an idea. He doesn’t.

VERUCA (OVER THE PHONE)

”You’ve got my mink coat, right?”

Mike raises an eyebrow. Charlie realizes, too late, that he left the coat back in the warehouse.

**INT. The vents.**

VERUCA

”So I’m taking your silence as a no.”

CHARLIE (OVER THE PHONE)

(Frantic)

”I’m so sorry, I completely forgot, dammit, I’ll pay you back, I’ll get a loan, an installment plan, I never should’ve-”

Veruca hears Charlie panic over the phone and buries her face in her hands as he speaks. It hurts to listen. He shouldn’t worry. He shouldn’t have to. He was supposed to take the coat. If he’d just taken the coat, he wouldn’t have to worry anymore.

Like she’s done so many times, she gathers herself before she interrupts him.

VERUCA

”Bucket. You owe me nothing. I can take care of myself.”

And before she can get a reply, she hangs up the call. It’s not distancing herself. It’s giving Charlie the best chance he can get.

**INT. The mixing room, by the window, late evening.**

Charlie, doing his best not to cry, watches the screen where he has just been hung up on. Mike tries to give him an encouraging pat on the arm, but as he goes to do that, Charlie turns his tears into determination.

**INT. The mixing room, by the window, sunset.**

Later, the whole group is gathered by the window. We know it’s later because outside, the sun has begun to set, painting the mixing room in thin beams of pink light. Charlie stands in front of the others, ready to say something. Violet is still draped over Mike’s shoulders. The Frau tries to meet her eye, but every time she tries, Violet looks away.

CHARLIE

”I’m going to go get Veruca.”

MIKE

”What? No! That’s a terrible idea! You’ll get got!”

JOE

”My boy, you’ll only put yourself in danger.”

CHARLIE

”I can’t just sit around doing nothing.”

The words are charged: as long as Charlie can remember, grandpa Joe has been sitting around doing nothing. They’ve had this argument before. No matter who wins, Joe remains passive and Charlie remains convinced that he can do more, get more jobs, help out more around the house, do literally anything to make life easier.

Joe shakes his head softly, but doesn’t argue.

FRAU

”You cannot go all alone.”

VIOLET

”I’ll come with.”

Everyone looks at Violet, who up until this point has just been watching it all unfold. She shrugs.

VIOLET

”It’s safer with two, right? I could use the exercise.”

CHARLIE

”Thank you.”

Charlie is grateful. Behind him, if you were to ask the Frau on a scale of 1 to 10 how worried she is about Violet, she’d ask if there was a wider scale.

Violet gives the Frau a dirty look and then unwraps herself from Mike, who is blinking in disbelief. He looks from Charlie to Violet, Violet to Charlie, and when neither of them budge or even look hesitant, Mike gives in. He does have a crush on one of them, after all.

It’s Violet. It’s definitely Violet. Why did he phrase it like that? It’s Violet. Mike is straight.

MIKE

”Okay. But you’re taking Frau Gloop’s phone, because there’s no way in hell you’re going offline.”

Joe walks off to get something.

Mike gives the Frau a look. Violet, now standing up, holds out a hand for the Frau to place her phone in.

The Frau takes it out and hands it to Violet. When she does, she touches Violet’s arm in what is supposed to be a comforting gesture. Violet rips it away.

FRAU

”Schatz...”

Joe returns and hands Charlie an old crowbar. Charlie takes it.

Violet glares at the Frau one last time and then goes back to Mike, who is already doing something on his computer. The Frau is left standing by herself. She watches Violet make plans in the background and feels useless.

It’s never too late. The Frau refuses to believe there’s such a thing as too late. Violet can be better. The Frau will help her in whatever way she can.

But, the Frau realizes, there’s such a thing as too early, and confronting someone before they want help might just push them further away.

**INT. The vents.**

Veruca’s phone rings again, blaring the now familiar opening to _Everybody Talks_. She answers automatically. At this point, she couldn’t care less who it is on the other end. She’s going to be confused and disappointed either way.

MIKE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Help is coming, princess.”

Oh. Oh no. This is exactly what Veruca didn’t want to happen.

VERUCA

”Bloody hell. Is he already on the way?”

MIKE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Yup. It is my solemn duty to guide you to the meeting point, so where are you?”

Up ahead, there’s a vent grate.

VERUCA

”Okay. Telling you where I am. With Lucifer’s colorful cousin eavesdropping.”

Through the vent grate, she can see the Everlasting Entrance Hallway. It’s a plain, grey hallway. Nothing special. Five days ago, Veruca would’ve made a passive-aggressive comment about how a grey hallway really is a terrible way to start a tour. Now, knowing the factory is really only fantastical for the first couple rooms, it fits.

The slim purple double doors are barely a hundred meters away. So close, yet so far away.

VERUCA

”Michael. Remember where I told you Charlie wasn’t interested?”

MIKE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Yeah, I remember.”

**INT. The mixing room, by the window, evening.**

MIKE

(Lower)

”Also, that was a really weird thing to say. I’m a straight, heterosexual man.”

Mike is thankfully alone, but he lowers his voice anyway, just in case sound carries in the mixing room. He doesn’t want even the concept of him being anything other than straight getting into hands, right or wrong. Because he’s not. Because he’s straight.

VERUCA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”I meant it platonically. Anyway, so where I am now, I can see that. That exact spot. Get it?”

Mike pulls up the map. Veruca remembers that? That, of course, was just recruiting, any good competitive gamer knows teaming is where it’s at, so there’s nothing weird about Veruca remembering it, but if she remembers that, and she remembers dropping a comment that frankly had no business even implying Mike was INTERESTED in Charlie, maybe she has the wrong idea about him, and now Mike can’t focus on the map anymore. He squeezes his arm.

MIKE

(Defensive)

”Got it. Also, I have a thing with Violet. A non-platonic thing.”

**INT. The vents.**

MIKE (OVER THE PHONE)

”We’ve made out. Several times. So no need to be weird about it.”

Veruca could not be less interested in Mike’s romantic life. Squinting at the light coming through the vent grate, she looks as though the true torture isn’t being hunted like a prey animal or crawling through dusty tubes, but having to listen to Mike explain how straight he is. Teenage boys can be so fragile.

VERUCA

”Michael? You’re the one being weird about it. I have told you where I am, now get me out.”

MIKE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Working on it. See, you can’t assume someone’s a sissy because he doesn’t fall at your feet. That’s a valuable life lesson, Rick. That’s the school of hard knocks, baby.”

Veruca buries her head in her hands as he talks. When he’s finally done, she leans close to the receiver.

VERUCA

(Fake remorse)

”Oh, I never should have emasculated you. I humbly beg forgiveness.”

(Normal)

”Good enough? Wonderful. How do I leave?”

For a beat, there’s sweet, sweet silence.

MIKE (OVER THE PHONE)

”Take a left.”

**INT. The mixing room, lunch break corner, afternoon.**

The Frau and Joe are sidelined on a bench.

The Frau can’t stop thinking about Violet. She feels like she’s failed her, somehow. It hurts her heart to watch this girl ruin herself. It hurts just as much to think she might have made it worse. Violet is clearly the victim of a bad, bad mother, someone who would dare put down her child, but as much as the Frau wants to help her, she doesn’t know how to anymore.

She just wants to give Violet a hug and tell her it’s going to be okay.

Problem is, Violet hates being touched and doesn’t listen when the Frau speaks.

FRAU

”All these kids are so pent up. I wish I knew how to help them.”

JOE

”Charlie is fine.”

The Frau relaxes a little bit, glad at least one of the teens doesn’t need an extensive therapy session.

Joe shakes his head.

JOE

”No, that is a lie. He is not.”

The Frau tenses again. Joe twiddles his thumbs.

JOE

”We have... financial troubles, and Charlie took the worst to it. The kid has had a way of making money on the side since he turned old enough to walk to school by himself.”

FRAU

”That’s way too early to start helping out!”

When she says it, the sentiment is genuine, but it’s worth noting that the Frau didn’t ask her seventeen-year-old son to help out, either. The two adults have the same ideal of responsibility - the kids should help out as much as they want to - and yet circumstances turned Augustus and Charlie into polar opposites. One never works, the other never relaxes. Neither of their guardians do much to steer them in the opposite direction.

JOE

”Right now, it’s all part time jobs and getting up at quarter to five to run the bike route. Nobody will take a man with my son’s... history, you see. And Josephine lost it earlier than she should have, George can’t walk since twelve years back, my Georgina can’t sew anymore because of the arthritis, and I...”

Joe pauses and looks down at the floor.

He isn’t as bad off as the other elders. He can walk without problem and is as healthy as a 70-year-old man can get. The Bucket family pretends like there’s some big reason he hasn’t worked for twenty years, but really, it all comes down to availability and motivation.

JOE

(Remorseful)

”There were so many former factory employees competing for so few jobs. When Jack married Geraldine and both were employed, I gave up.”

FRAU

”Just like that?”

The Frau is going from a general emotional concern to a concern of the ’why wouldn’t you help your family’-variety.

Joe looks back up.

JOE

(Justifying)

”It was that or the Vermicious Knids, and I was not Arlo Hoffa’s favorite employee back in the factory.”

The Vermicious Knids are loyal to the layoff families. They have been since they were formed, thirty years ago. If the Buckets were to ask for help, they would provide it. Problem is, the last time they asked, the help got Jack arrested.

Joe was never quite as bold as his boss. He didn’t even join the worker’s strike, didn’t like the risk. He could never have committed to a life of crime - not that he would have been trusted to take candy from a baby if he’d tried.

The Frau thinks about this. There’s always a reason. She knows there’s always a reason. But also, competition isn’t a good enough reason for Joe to give up and make his grandson pull the weight.

FRAU

”There must’ve been something you could do? Something you can do now?”

Joe smiles weakly.

JOE

”It is too late.”

Any day now, that perfect job opportunity will come around for Jack - the opportunity that will get Charlie to college and get the family above just managing. It will. It has to.

**INT. The hallways.**

Song playing over this scene: _Arabella_ by Arctic Monkeys.

We see Charlie and Violet sneaking down a hallway.

Later, they briefly exchange a few words about being lost. Violet takes out the Frau’s phone and ignores the lock screen, pulling up the phone app as soon as possible.

Later, Violet hangs up the phone and points down a hallway. They head towards down it.

**INT. Production Walkway.**

Later, they’re in more familiar territory - we recognize the walkway by the chocolate river - when they hear keys jingle in the Inventing Lab lock. Charlie and Violet freeze in place and make themselves as tiny as possibly, pressing against the wall. The door, thankfully, opens on their side.

The Squirrel Boss walks out of the door and in the other direction, slamming the door behind him. His steps are fast and determined. He doesn’t turn around. When he reaches the end of the walkway, he brushes past the door labeled ”GOBSTOPPERS” and turns the corner into the labyrinth of hallways.

When around the corner, he unlocks the first door he sees. It opens into a stairway. He closes the door behind him, and the camera doesn’t follow.

Back on the walkway, Charlie and Violet relax.

End _Arabella_ at the cut.

**INT. Willy Wonka’s office, evening, present day.**

In some ways, the office is the same room we saw in the flashback, the same array of cork boards, the same bright yellow walls. The spinning chair from episode four is there, as is the stationary phone. Outside the window, the sun is in the middle of setting.

But as the Squirrel Boss pushes Norman to the floor, there is no fun atmosphere, no wacky air of invention.

Willy spins to face Norman and rises from the spinning chair with a bounce in his step.

WILLY WONKA

”Why shouldn’t I just push you down the stairs, Normal?”

NORMAN

”Uhm.”

Behind Norman, the Squirrel Boss opens the door.

Outside the door, the stairs spiral down so far you can’t see the bottom. There’s also a glass-walled elevator, but that’s not a viable way to kill someone.

Norman looks around the room. His eyes land on the cork board wall. Instead of the candy recipes and brain storming one would expect, it’s newspaper articles and printouts. Augustus has his mouth full in one photo. Violet princess smiles in another. Underneath them, a young latino man with frizzy hair poses with a ticket. The headline reads ”ALBERTO MINOLETTA: ”I NEVER EXPECTED TO GET ONE”. Willy’s even saved the article about the faker.

Willy steps in front of the cork board and looks down at Norman.

WILLY WONKA

”Well?”

NORMAN

”I’ll help you get the others.”

WILLY WONKA

”Do tell.”

Norman grows the backbone Doris always insists he should. When he meets Willy’s eyes, the similarity to Mike is shocking.

NORMAN

(Serious)

”I know where they are. For that matter, I’m a chemist. Chocolate is chemistry. I can make myself useful here.”

WILLY WONKA

”You make a compelling offer. What’s the catch?”

NORMAN

”Immunity for my son. Let Mike leave, and I’ll do whatever you want.”

Willy gives the Squirrel Boss a look. The Squirrel Boss closes the door and holds out a hand for Norman to take. Norman takes it and is helped up. Meanwhile, Willy wanders over to the cork board.

WILLY WONKA

”Deal!”

Norman looks around, surprised he’s still alive. The Squirrel Boss is on standby and looks ready to slam Norman to the floor in a way he won’t recover from.

WILLY WONKA

”I’m about to tell you something top-secret, Norman, so I’ll need your utmost discretion. If this were to get out, well...”

The Squirrel Boss grabs Norman’s shoulder and guides him to sit down in the spinning chair.

SQUIRREL BOSS

”Bad nuts get their comeuppance.”

Willy smiles too brightly. Norman swallows.

In his article photo, pinned right next to the faker, Mike glares at the camera. Doris sits next to him, looking tired after her afternoon drink. Between the two, Norman stands tall, as if he’s the strong patriarch all nuclear families demand. That Mike demands.

It’s time to step up.

**INT. The mixing room, day, thirty-two years ago.**

We return to the mixing room, moments after Pottle has been fired and left. Joe looks after her with something like regret in his eyes, and then looks at his vat of chocolate and perks right up.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”And then, years passed like that. Anything Pondicherry said went.”

Joe starts stirring the chocolate, and then we see time passing around him. Same camera angle, same room, but months pass - snow falls outside the windows, suns and moons go up and down, Arlo climbs up and down his watchtower to talk to people in fast motion, Willy Wonka Senior appears and disappears and Pondicherry appears and disappears and squirrels run back and forth as Arlo grows more and more resigned with their existence. As we see this, George speaks.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”Pondicherry was the source of many great ideas, and Wonka was, well, himself. In Joe’s usual words, ’Wonka only grew more brilliant with the help of his friend’.”

And then, time slows. It’s evening. The sun is setting outside big industrial windows. Joe’s coworkers fade out one by one. With every fade, the sun gets a little bit lower, until finally, it’s just Joe stirring his vat. As we see this, Georgina speaks.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”And then, one night nearly two years later, Joe was working late to fill his quota. One by one, his coworkers went home until it was only him and Arlo. And then, it was only him.”

Arlo walks past the vat.

ARLO

”Be right back.”

Young Joe gives the foreman a nod and continues doing his job. The camera tilts down to focus entirely on the chocolate spiral in the vat. The lighting goes darker, and when the camera tilts back up again, the sun has set completely. Joe is still alone in the mixing room.

Pondicherry enters in a huff, using his umbrella as a walking stick.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”It was a strange sight, because up until that point, Joe had never seen Pondicherry bothered.”

Pondicherry leans his umbrella next to the vat and continues through the room like he’s looking for something. He checks a vat farther back, finds nothing, and turns around. Only then does he notice Joe, still mixing chocolate in silence, looking right back.

Pondicherry immediately shifts in both mood and posture, plastering on a smile that does not look genuine.

PONDICHERRY

”Working late, are we?”

JOE

”Yes.”

Pondicherry nods.

PONDICHERRY

”What do you think of Willard?”

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”Joe, of course, told the truth.”

Joe thinks about it, and then stops stirring the chocolate long enough to answer.

JOE

(Genuinely)

”He’s a genius. He has never had a bad idea, and if he did, he would turn it in his favor. He could turn poison mushrooms into medicine and toxic gas into perfume, and not one person would be harmed in the process.”

Pondicherry nods very slowly and thoughtfully. His fake smile vanishes.

PONDICHERRY

”Sweet Willard does succeed in any venture he makes a go at. Very well.”

He smiles for real and steps forward. He holds out a hand for Joe to shake, and Joe takes it.

When he does, Pondicherry shakes an exaggerated amount. Pondicherry quietly excuses himself and then leaves. Joe watches him go, and then grabs his giant chocolate stirring spoon.

He briefly looks down, and sees Pondicherry’s umbrella, still leaned against the vat.

**INT. The hallways, thirty years ago.**

Joe bursts out of the mixing room with the umbrella in hand. He looks around, but the hallways are empty.

Pan in on Joe’s face as George speaks.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”By then, Pondicherry was nowhere to be seen. The truly strange thing, though, happened an hour later, when Joe was walking home.”

**EXT. Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, night, thirty years ago.**

Joe is walking home, his work bag over one shoulder and Pondicherry’s forgotten umbrella in hand, when a long black limo drives past him. The very front of the car is decorated with a small golden crown.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”Pondicherry very rarely left the factory and used his limousine even less, but there it was.”

Joe stops and holds out the umbrella for Pondicherry to take. The limo doesn’t stop, pulling past him and through the gates. Joe watches his reflection in the jet black limo glass.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”As Joe watched the dark glass roll past, he could not help but wonder if Pondicherry was in there at all.”

The limo pulls out of view and Joe holds the umbrella closer, looking down at it like he doesn’t know what to make of it.

**INT. The Salty Sea-room, upper level, present day.**

Charlie and Violet enter the Salty Sea-room from the upper level. Charlie wields the crowbar Joe gave him like a badly handled weapon.

The last time we saw this room, Charlie and Joe were almost chopped to pieces by the ceiling fan. Now, we see it from above the aquarium, where metal walkways are suspended from the ceiling. Underneath, actual sharks cruise around an aquarium full of candy fish. There’s a vent grate in a wall, near a walkway. On the other side is Veruca.

VERUCA

”Bucket, you really shouldn’t have.”

Charlie darts around. When he sees Veruca, he’s relieved.

CHARLIE

”Hang on, I’ll get you out!”

He hooks the crowbar under the edge of the vent grate, but his weak cabbage arms don’t even begin to budge it.

Violet hesitates, and then takes the crowbar from Charlie, wedging it in and leaning all her weight on it. The grate loosens. Violet hates every second of it. As soon as there’s a hole for Veruca to get out, she backs off and Charlie takes her place, helping Veruca crawl out underneath the bent up metal.

The moment she has feet on the unsteady walkway, Veruca tries to speak.

VERUCA

”Seriously, what part of ’I can ta-”

And then, she breaks into a coughing fit as dust swirls around her. She steps out onto the metal half blind, squinting at the light, feeling around for anything to hold onto until she can see better.

And then, she’s clinging to Charlie as the dust settles around them. He’s very carefully wiping the dust off of her, trying to clear the air while also scared it’ll be weird if he touches her.

Veruca squints up at Charlie. Charlie smiles carefully.

They’re having a moment. Veruca is absolutely terrified of it.

Nothing about, say, dating Charlie Bucket would be sustainable. Different home countries. Too young for it to last. Definitely too long to uproot one or both lives to live near each other. Time zones would make long distance extra difficult - and also, Charlie definitely doesn’t own a phone, so what would she do, stay up until two at night to call some high school’s landline phone on the off chance that he isn’t in class? No! Everything about how Veruca is feeling right now is inconvenient and bad and-

VERUCA

(Self conscious)

”Thanks. For getting me.”

CHARLIE

(Soft)

”We’re not letting people go alone into situations they can’t handle, right?”

He bumps her shoulder. It’s either playful or encouraging. Veruca’s too dizzy with adrenaline and feelings to tell which.

VIOLET

”We have to go.”

Turn camera to Violet, who has been standing behind Charlie since Veruca got out. Veruca lets go of Charlie’s shoulders and directs all her attention to Violet.

VERUCA

”Back?”

CHARLIE

(Explaining to Veruca)

”Not back to the bay, we’ve relocated-”

Veruca cuts him off. He can be cute later. Bloody hell, she thinks he’s cute. She puts on her best poker face.

VERUCA

”And the exit is just around the corner. Literally, down a level and through Wonka’s weird sugar-fueled fever dream.”

Charlie looks at Violet to gauge what she thinks. Violet looks right back, completely neutral. Charlie has to make this executive decision.

The economy is going to go up in flames. This isn’t going to be something they can shake off. It’ll be like a second recession, even without the layoffs.

CHARLIE

”Just... we can’t leave them behind. There- there are consequences to these things, the economy... we can’t just leave without saying something, what if they get hurt?”

This isn’t the Willy Wonka who fired hundreds. This is his son, the Willy Wonka who has it out for ten people in particular. Charlie has always hated trolley problems, not because he’s indecisive, but because they stress him out. He has enough going on without having to think about theoretical victims. He can’t choose because he doesn’t want anyone to get hurt. He knows all too well what being a victim feels like, and he would rather die than be the one making people into them. Which he’ll be doing, either way. Large or small. Long lasting or personal.

Veruca puts a hand on his shoulder, trying to be impersonal about it.

VERUCA

”This is not the time for strategy, Oliver Twist.”

She taps him on the cheek. Charlie does his very best not to flush bright red. Veruca, oblivious, dusts off her dress. What used to be pretty and pink is now uneven and grey, so dusty the dust might as well be part of the fabric.

Violet holds up a case of small glass bottles. We recognize them as Fizzy Lifting Drinks.

VIOLET

”What happens if I drink this?”

There’s no discernible way to _walk_ down to the Salty Sea-room floor from the walkway. Over the edge of the shark tank, the air is filled with bubbles.

Veruca and Charlie, who’ve both tried this drink at least once, exchange looks.

**INT. The mixing room, by the window, evening.**

Mike presses the enter button on his keyboard. On screen, we see a window pop up and a call wait to be taken.

MIKE

(Under his breath)

”Come on, pick up...”

The call is picked up. Mike adjusts his position to be closer to the computer.

MIKE

”Listen,”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”Mike Teavee! Just thought I’d check in and update the tour conditions - teens love whatever’s new and fresh, right?”

Mike groans.

MIKE

”Shut up about your cringe-ass murder game, pansy.”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”Oh, I just thought you’d like to know that you’re free to go!”

Wait, what?

WILLY WONKA

”Have fun with that!”

Mike hangs up and leans back. His mind is racing.

Some gamers hate cheating. They say things like ”it takes away from the experience” and ”using x-ray in an online match isn’t fair for other players” when Mike cheats, but sometimes you’ve gotta break rules to get the job done, and there’s nothing quite as satisfying as pure, incoherent gamer rage.

The computer makes a terrible noise, a cross between a cough and a choke. Mike mutes it without blinking.

Willy Wonka has granted Mike a real life cheat code, and if he thinks Mike isn’t going to stay and exploit it, he’s wrong. Mike may be a cheater, but he’s not a traitor. He’s not going to walk out on his teammates first chance he gets. Platonic bros don’t leave platonic bros to die. Platonic bros wait for platonic bros to get back from his rescue mission before trolling the hell out of a man who unironically wears a bow tie.

Mike returns to the computer and unmutes. The noise continues, getting worse and worse. Mike lowers the volume with one hand and types with the other, already back on the grind. He’s going to find something useful.

**INT. The Candy Forest.**

The teens emerge from the door to the Salty Sea-room.

VIOLET

(Queasy)

”We will never talk about that again.”

VERUCA

”Deal.”

Charlie burps up the last of the lifting gas as quietly as he can. Violet looks sick.

The candy forest looks the same as it did when we saw it last - all unnatural green grass and candy trees and jutting candy canes - but it’s dark now. Through the glass dome above, the sky is dark. The candy forest is lit by nothing but the moon. Stepping down into the forest, the teens can’t help but be on their guard.

They walk. They look around. Charlie sees the spot where he sat and ate with Augustus. There’s still an indent in the candy grass, still some candy scattered around. Violet sees a smashed candy pumpkin, filling soaked into the ground. Veruca listens to the distant frothing of the chocolate waterfall. Watching the river, it dawns on her how unnatural the whole room is. How manufactured. Once used, it can’t restore itself. It’s not nature, it’s a display.

Everything is quiet, save for the waterfall. Nothing can make sound in here. It’s eerie.

She watches Charlie, lit by the moonlight, and reprimands herself for doing it. After a few seconds, Charlie looks in her direction, and she quickly looks away, pretending to be very interested in the river. Charlie smiles.

And then, a voice cuts through the silence.

PURPLE SQUIRREL (OFF SCREEN)

(Far away)

”You think we’ve lost her?”

Veruca’s hair stands on end. Charlie, too, reacts to the sound - not as if he knows the voice means danger, but as if he hears someone familiar.

Veruca motions for the others to crouch. They do, and they keep moving across the candy forest, hoping the darkness keeps them hidden.

Across the room, the Squirrel Masks stay close to each other as they examine their surroundings.

GREEN SQUIRREL

”Can’t have gotten far. Ridiculous room.”

The Purple Squirrel pokes at a caramel tree.

PURPLE SQUIRREL

”Oh, the urban legends just don’t do the real thing justice. People would love this.”

Low to the ground, Veruca takes the crowbar from Violet and holds it like she’s ready to attack, just in case they’re discovered. Behind her, Charlie sneaks up to the door leading out to the entrance hallways.

GREEN SQUIRREL (OFF SCREEN)

(Far away)

”Lucky we’re hunting the Salt girl, huh?”

PURPLE SQUIRREL (OFF SCREEN)

(Far away)

”Not a fan of the word ’hunting’!”

GREEN SQUIRREL (OFF SCREEN)

(Far away)

”Could be worse. Could be someone else.”

PURPLE SQUIRREL (OFF SCREEN)

(Far away)

”Right.”

Violet and Veruca watch the Squirrels from a distance.

Finally, Charlie gets the door open, and on cue, the speaker system comes to life. Loudly, we hear the slow opening notes of _Pure Imagination_.

Across the room, the Squirrel Masks whip around and shout.

Violet, Veruca, and Charlie slip through the door as fast as they can.

**INT. The actual entrance hallway.**

Inside, Charlie pulls the door shut and holds the handle, leaning away from the door so that if the masks try to open it, there will be resistance. Behind the door, _Pure Imagination_ is still playing.

The girls get further into the room and look around. There is no visible exit. Veruca turns around and sees Charlie. She frowns.

VERUCA

”You can’t hold the door on your own!”

Violet goes to help. Charlie gives her a thankful nod and looks back at Veruca.

CHARLIE

”There’s a wall here somewhere that you can walk through? No idea how it works, but it should throw them off our trail?”

Veruca gets to searching, touching the walls. After a beat or two, she puts a hand to a spot on the wall and it goes through.

VERUCA

”Here!”

She indicates where she is, waving the crowbar through the wall to demonstrate. When she’s sure everybody knows which patch of wall is walkthrough, she vanishes through it.

Charlie and Violet look at each other, silently wondering who goes first. Charlie, who lives by the idea of making himself as useful as possible, moves his head for her to go first. Violet, who does not have a complex relevant to the situation, nods.

She silently counts down from three, and then lets go of the door, dashing for the part of wall Veruca walked through with speed that almost makes her feel like her body hasn’t changed.

Charlie shoves an arm through the door handle. It’s the kind of handle that’s attached at both the top and bottom. This way, he doesn’t have to strain his hands, and can use his full weight to hold the door shut.

Violet vanishes through the wall. Charlie sees this and relaxes.

He starts to pull his arm away so he can make his own run for it, and right then, the Squirrel Masks on the other side of the door pull the door. Hard. Charlie’s arm is yanked away from him just as his wrist is level with the crack in the door.

We cut to Charlie’s face as he feels his arm just below his wrist catch between two opposite forces and break. Charlie Bucket was raised on a diet of watery cabbage and potatoes. His bones are weak.

He screams and stumbles backwards. His thoughts are that of pain and of ’all it would take is a broken leg, a second degree burn, and the soup is just warm water’. How will he ride a bike with a broken wrist, how will he make up for the loss of income-

And the door swings open. In front of him, silhouetted against the distant moon, are the two Squirrel Masks, guns in hand.

**INT. The hallways, thirty years ago.**

Joe walks up to the mixing room doors for the start of his shift the next day. The doors are slightly open, and through them we can see a streak of daylight. Then, the doors open and Arlo exits. He takes one look at Joe, sets his jaw, and pushes Joe to the side.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”When Joe arrived at the factory the next day, foreman Arlo pulled him aside.”

ARLO

(Discreet)

”Bucket. See Pondicherry last night?”

Joe nods, a little bit confused.

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”Joe told him everything, and when he finished, Arlo got very serious and said this:”

Arlo hardens and makes himself taller, becoming more intimidating than someone working at a chocolate factory should reasonably be.

ARLO

”Don’t tell a soul.”

JOE

(Confused)

”Why? What happened?”

Arlo shakes his head.

ARLO

”This is our little secret. Keep your mouth shut and stir the chocolate faster, and I won’t tell the boss if you work shorter shifts for the same pay, you get me?”

Joe nods again, getting the gist.

We now see Joe at the vat, stirring the chocolate. Around him, his co-workers inaudibly gossip and pass notes via Squirrel.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”So Joe kept his mouth shut and stirred the chocolate a little faster.”

GEORGE (VOICEOVER)

”The whole factory was gossiping, though. Some were more interested than the others, and some blew their covers in the process, exposing themselves as spies for other chocolatiers. Two weeks later, Wonka told all his workers to go home and shut the gates for, seemingly, forever.”

As George speaks, we see the following scenes. For every scene, the yellow color tint lowers, transitioning from the happy before-times into the day when everything went wrong.

As Joe packs up one evening, he is cornered by a co-worker who looks very fascinated by the recent rumors. The co-worker inaudibly says a bunch of things while Joe humbly shakes his head and dodges questions. The co-worker nudges Joe with an arm and winks. When Joe doesn’t get it, the co-worker leaves.

Joe walks down the hallways only to see the door to the INVENTING LAB slightly open. Inside, several pink-wearing employees snoop around. Joe’s eyes go wide and he walks a little bit faster.

In the mixing room, Willy Wonka Senior and Arlo have an inaudible argument. Willy is winning, gesturing to the vats and workers around them while Arlo tries to de-escalate. Willy, exasperated, drags his hands over his face. Then, we hear him.

WILLY WONKA SENIOR

”Leave.”

Outside, we see the gates close in front of a hundred fired employees, Arlo at the front. When the gates click into place, Arlo grabs them and shouts, throat hoarse, fists around the gate bars. A distance away, Joe looks at the factory in regret. Then, he leaves.

GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”But Joe hears Pondicherry left because Willy Wonka had been working on a secret palace out of chocolate for him, and that was why he had spent so much time at the factory, and that was where he had gone to, to live in it. That was what Pondicherry had been so worried about - after all, would it not melt?”

As Georgina speaks, the yellow color tint returns all at once, and we see scenes that were obviously made up by Joe to tell to a young Charlie:

Pondicherry and Willy Wonka Senior embracing before Pondicherry gets in the limousine. Willy waving him off with a bright smile. Pondicherry looking out through the back window and then turning to look at the front just as Joe becomes visible through the back window, missing the umbrella offer by a hair. Pondicherry stepping off a helicopter into the desert, where a large chocolate palace stands.

GEORGE AND GEORGINA (VOICEOVER)

”But it didn’t, and Pondicherry lives there to this day."

Pondicherry enters his chocolate palace and closes the huge chocolate doors behind him.

**INT. The Bucket residence, living room, evening, present day.**

The elders are in their bed. Wilkinson snaps out of focusing on the elder’s story and writes something down in his notepad, which is pretty full by now.

WILKINSON

”Is what you’ve told me true?”

George shrugs. Georgina sighs.

GEORGINA

”Most of it, yes. My dear Joe always told me about his day when he got home, so I remember that this happened.”

She scoots over to the edge of the bed and leans down to get something from underneath.

GEORGE

”Well, Pondicherry obviously did not go to a chocolate palace in the middle of the desert. We all know that much.”

Georgina pops back up, holding something long and metal.

GEORGINA

”Here’s the umbrella.”

Pondicherry’s umbrella has not had an easy thirty years - the fabric has been patched up in several places, and it doesn’t fit the frame quite right. The metal has begun to rust. The handle has a crack, and the brilliant yellow is dirty and faded, but it’s the same umbrella.

Wilkinson takes and examines it like it’s an important clue.

WILKINSON

”Interesting.”

He rises.

WILKINSON

”This has been a great help. I will certainly look into the people you’ve mentioned. Would you mind if I took this for the investigation?”

Georgina shakes her head. George smiles at Josephine, who has fallen asleep on his shoulder.

Wilkinson packs up, puts his notepad in his trench coat pocket, and begins putting his sunglasses on when something in another pocket beeps loudly. He fishes out a brick of a flip phone and takes the call. We do not hear what the call says, but Wilkinson’s face changes as he takes it.

WILKINSON

(In a rush)

”I will be right there.”

**INT. The actual entrance hallway.**

Charlie sees the masks and immediately looks around for something to defend himself with. He finds nothing. The Green Squirrel approaches slowly, gun firmly raised.

The Green Squirrel takes a couple steps too close. Charlie backs up.

CHARLIE

(Panicked)

”We haven’t done anything to deserve this- please, I haven’t hurt you, I have a family that needs me, you can’t shoot... what did we even do? Why are you doing this?”

The Green Squirrel stops.

Behind him, the Purple Squirrel walks up and puts a hand on the Green Squirrel’s shoulder, the one with the arm holding a gun. They look at each other.

A beat, and the Green Squirrel lowers the gun. The Purple Squirrel steps behind him.

GREEN SQUIRREL

”You have ten seconds to go where you need to go.”

Charlie stares.

 _Pure Imagination_ ends behind the door.

GREEN SQUIRREL

”Ten seconds, Charlie _Bucket_.”

Behind him, the Purple Squirrel holds up fingers and begins to count.

Charlie takes the hint. He backs a few more steps, eyes on the Squirrel Masks. When the Purple Squirrel has put down five fingers, he dives through the wall.

**INT. The Everlasting entrance hallway.**

Charlie emerges. Up ahead, Violet is running. Veruca has waited for Charlie, only a short distance away from the wall, and she feels stupid about it until she sees him.

Charlie turns to her, holding his broken arm to his chest.

CHARLIE

(Shouting)

”Run!”

Veruca’s eyes widen, and she takes off, running in broken stockings, crowbar trailing behind her. Charlie follows, acutely aware of how much his arm hurts and how he definitely should have been shot eight seconds ago.

And then, the chase goes into slow motion as _Don’t Matter_ by Derik Fein starts playing.

Halfway down the hallway, Veruca slips. Her stockings don’t have grip on the cold marble floor.

Charlie shouts her name.

The Squirrels emerge, Green Squirrel first.

Charlie looks over his shoulder, and then dashes to Veruca.

Though we cannot hear her, we see Veruca shout the word ”zig-zag” as Charlie helps her up, wincing as she grabs his broken hand. Veruca notices that it hurts, but has no time to ask about it. She takes his other arm and starts running again, dragging Charlie with her.

The Green Squirrel reloads his gun. Behind him, the Purple Squirrel might as well have forgotten that he has one of his own.

Violet was further ahead. She stops a few feet ahead of the door, looking around for a lock, a keypad, anything.

The Green Squirrel gestures with his gun for the Purple Squirrel to run after them. The Purple Squirrel does.

Veruca is basically supporting Charlie now. Charlie is going to cry. Veruca shouts something to Violet.

Of all things to lock his front door with, Willy Wonka has gone with a simple lock that locks from the inside.

The Purple Squirrel is gaining on them.

_”But if I miss least I went down swinging”_

On the word ”swinging”, Charlie and Veruca reach the door. Hard cut on both music and video just as they touch it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The writers' room hopes everyone has a happy new year!  
> As always, the writers' room might take some time in putting out the next episode. If you are following Candyman, be patient. There's a plan. Oh boy, if there's a plan. We're getting into execution territory now.
> 
> As of the 2nd of January 2021, all chapters have one-sentence summaries, previously on's, and content warnings. The writers' room has also gone through all posted chapters and fixed Inconsistent Capitalization, misspelled words, and any other wrinkles. Same story, same text, but just a little more polished.  
> There is also a link to the official Candyman playlist in the notes of the first episode, for people who're interested in the soundtrack.


	7. S1E7 - If your father were here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the outside world gets tougher and Charlie goes clubbing.
> 
> Previously on Candyman:  
> Charlie, Veruca, and Violet had just managed to get to the door leading out of the factory. Willy Wonka told Mike he was free to go. Mike and Violet have a thing. Three people have been lost to the factory: Rupert Salt, Scarlett Beauregarde, and Augustus Gloop. Rupert had made a deal with one Arthur Slugworth to get Veruca's ticket. Mike's computer's been making random coughing noises. Charlie's father used to be part of a gang, the Vermicious Knids, until it got him arrested.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for:  
> Getting made fun of online, Violet’s eating disorder, Mike’s internalized homophobia, debt, money troubles, absentee/missing parents, processing loss, gang and drug mentions, mentions of Scarlett being a bad mom, food troubles, depressive spirals, and a non-graphic description of someone in the process of choking.

**EXT. Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, evening.**

When the double doors open, Charlie, Veruca, and Violet tumble out into the yard in front of the factory. It’s completely covered in untouched snow, reaching up to their ankles. It’s completely unlit.

On the other side of the gates, streetlights glow and reflect off a hundred currently unused cameras as crowds huddle around heat lamps and join in choruses of _The Candy Man_. The song is playing from a speaker somewhere far away and amplified by tens of chocolate enthusiasts with eerily good voices.

The teens keep running: Charlie gets dragged forward by Veruca and shivers something terrible, Veruca feels her feet numb in the snow, Violet looks over her shoulder every other second.

VERUCA

(Yelling)

”Help!”

Some people stop singing. A few heads turn in their direction, but show no sign of seeing them.

Veruca fumbles with her phone, fingers numb, and turns on the flashlight. She lets go of Charlie’s arm to wave it in the air as a signal.

Over her shoulder, Violet sees the Squirrel Masks look at each other and close the doors. They’re not going to make more of a spectacle. Not when Veruca’s starting to get people’s attention.

VERUCA

(Yelling, pissed off)

”Bloody hell, we need help! Open the god damn gates! If you stanned this stupid competition you do not get to look away! Not today! Help!”

And then, cameras start flashing.

Later, the teens are on the other side of the gate. _The Candy Man_ is playing somewhere nearby. Someone in the crowd is carrying away a ladder. People have made room around a heat lamp. Charlie is sat on the ground, wrapped in a grey blanket and full on sobbing into Veruca’s shoulder. Violet, standing right by the heat lamp, is hit with wave after wave of anxious giggles as she stares into the light.

It would be a welcome moment of peace, but people are talking. Looking. Asking questions.

CHOCOLATE ENTHUSIAST 1

”What happened?”

CHOCOLATE ENTHUSIAST 2

”Why is Violet purple?

CHOCOLATE ENTHUSIAST 3

”Hey if I tag you in this photo will you like it? I really need the clout.”

It all blends together into one big auditory overload, pulled together by _The Candy Man_ , which seems to get louder every ten seconds and is either on loop or just a really long song. Veruca doesn’t care, but being the only one not lost in feelings, the majority of questions are aimed at her, and cameras flash and catch her from unflattering angles, and they’ve clearly been through something rough, why don’t people just see that,

She separates herself from Charlie, and then stands up, gritting her teeth. The old crowbar is ice cold as she pushes her way through the crowd, throwing death glares at anyone daring to address her.

Finally, she sees it. The speaker. It’s small and hooked up to someone’s pickup truck, cheerfully asking _”Who can take a sunrise, sprinkle it with dew, cover it in chocolate and a miracle or two?”_ as if everything is right in the world.

Veruca smashes it until the only noise it makes is the sputtering of electricity.

VERUCA

”Shut up! _Shut up_! Who even wrote this song, what does wrapping something in a sigh even mean, why do you people even _like this_ ,”

Someone taps Veruca on the shoulder. Veruca spins around, ready to give them a piece of her mind, but instead, she sees an FBI badge. Holding the badge is a man in a top hat, trench coat and sunglasses.

WILKINSON

”Miss Salt, I need you to come with me.”

VERUCA

”I’m going to pay for the speaker, Mycroft Holmes.”

But Wilkinson isn’t here for vandalization of personal property.

**INT. By the window, the mixing room, Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, night.**

Mike is sifting through files like a true professional when an incoming call pops up on his computer screen.

He perks up, assuming Charlie and the others are finally getting back to him. It’s been a couple hours, now. That’s a concerning amount of time to spend in the factory without notice.

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

(Bitter)

”In light of the recent escape of your fellow teens, I’d like to inform you that you are still free to go. In fact, you should join them as soon as possible.”

Mike has his best ’I hate this man’-look before he registers what the hated man in question actually said. Then, he drops it, confused.

MIKE

”They’re out?”

He puts the laptop to the side and looks through the boarded windows, down at the crowd by the gates. People are starting to peel off. There are police cars, lighting the snow up bright red and blue. Someone’s closing off the gate by putting up yellow tape.

They made it out. The world knows.

And they didn’t tell Mike they were gonna escape.

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE COMPUTER, OFF SCREEN)

”Yes, and you’re not.”

Mike looks over his shoulder, fully prepared and ready to ask what the hell that’s supposed to mean, but Willy keeps talking as if his sentence didn’t have any double meaning at all.

WILLY WONKA (CONTINUED OVER THE COMPUTER, OFF SCREEN)

”A warning, though! Get out soon. I may be extending a caramel branch, but my arm gets tired just holding it out.”

Mike thinks about this. He fully turns to face the computer.

MIKE

”So is this a pvp-free situation, or are your goons allowed to non-lethally kick my ass?”

WILLY WONKA (OVER THE COMPUTER)

”Not right now! But I might just start breaking off twigs out of boredom. Clock’s ticking, Mike Teavee!”

Mike crouches in front of the computer and hangs up. Then, he sits down. He stares at the ceiling and crosses his arms, squeezing his upper arms.

Because it’s good that they’ve escaped, and that people are coming, and all that fun stuff, but something about Charlie ”we can’t just leave Veruca to die in the vents” Bucket not even calling makes Mike feel like absolute crap.

And also Violet isn’t here anymore, and Mike is appropriately upset about that, because they’re _something_ to each other and that means Mike has to feel something about her absence. That’s how romance works. Probably.

Complicated feelings aside, Mike knows this: leaving the Frau and Joe behind would be a dick move. Escaping is for cowards. Mike is not a coward.

As if on cue, his computer starts making coughing noises.

**INT. The FBI’s temporary office, backroom, night.**

In a backroom of their terraced house, the agents have set up a makeshift interrogation room. It’s the standard setup, a chair on either side of a table, a lamp hanging overhead.

This scene is shot fast paced and tricky - Wilkinson will ask a question, and then the camera will spin around to the other side for a witness to answer, return to Wilkinson, spin back, but with every question, the person answering changes. These people are not being interviewed at the same time.

WILKINSON

”You are Violet Beauregarde, yes?”

VIOLET

”Yes.”

WILKINSON

”What happened to you?”

Charlie has a cast around his broken wrist.

CHARLIE

”She, uh- tried the gum, and then everyone was talking and Violet’s mom was yelling and there was a gun and. He shot her. Wonka shot Violet’s mom and then... and then I think he wanted to shoot Violet too but- oh my god why did we leave them in there you have to get them out now-”

WILKINSON

”And did Scarlett Beauregarde die?”

Veruca takes out her phone and slides it across the table.

VERUCA

”I was filming. Everything you’ll need is on here.”

WILKINSON

”Why were you filming?”

VIOLET

”Her father had to put himself in debt to get the ticket. She was spying.”

WILKINSON

”Where is Rupert Salt, anyway?”

CHARLIE

”He- there were people in masks, like, squirrel masks, and they had blowtorches. We never saw his body, he might be fine, he-”

Wilkinson moves his chair closer to the table. Film the following in simple shot-reverse-shot.

WILKINSON

”Mister Bucket, about our deal...”

Charlie thinks for a beat, and then swallows, realizing what Wilkinson is trying to say. In his pocket, he feels the business card. He takes it out, and then looks up to meet Wilkinson’s eyes. Or sunglasses, rather.

CHARLIE

”It’s not on anymore, is it? Not exclusive information?”

Agent Wilkinson nods solemnly, knowing full well Charlie could use that money. It just doesn’t make sense as an investment anymore. Especially not when Veruca’s got pictures and video footage. That says more about the factory than the word of a poor boy could.

**INT. The FBI’s temporary office, night.**

Charlie exits into the main living room. Wilkinson, holding open the door for him, follows and closes it after them.

WILKINSON

”That will be all. You are free to go.”

Veruca rises from an armchair. She goes to say something, but it doesn’t come out, so she just gestures towards Charlie’s arm as if asking if it feels better now. Charlie gives a thumbs up with the arm in a cast. His fingers are still free to move. Veruca snorts.

Glockenberry comes from the kitchen, carrying mugs and a piping hot pot of coffee. She hands Charlie a mug and fills it.

GLOCKENBERRY

”Mister Bucket, your mother will be coming to pick you up as soon as her shift ends.”

Charlie nods gratefully. He looks at the cup, and then downs it despite the fact that the coffee is hot enough to burn his tongue.

GLOCKENBERRY

”Miss Salt, I’ve attempted to contact yours as well, but she hasn’t gotten back to us. You should hope for a call back at the hotel.”

Veruca takes a cup but doesn’t touch her coffee. She pulls her mouth into a thin line.

VERUCA

(Dry)

”Great.”

GLOCKENBERRY

”And Miss Beauregarde, efforts have been made to contact your family, but-”

VIOLET

”I have no other family members.”

As if in sync, both Charlie and Veruca look at Violet. Charlie can’t imagine not having family and is sad for her. Veruca is surprised - she would never have taken Violet Beauregarde, a famous gum chewer and beauty queen, as someone without a family. It feels like she should have a big supportive one.

VIOLET

”Don’t look at me like that. I just don’t have any. It’s fine.”

Before people can start asking questions, there’s a knock on the door. Wilkinson opens. On the other side is Geraldine Bucket, Charlie’s mom.

Geraldine gives an excusing smile, sorry if she’s interrupted anything. She then hurries inside to give Charlie a bear hug. Being a rather petite woman, Charlie has to crouch down to properly hug her back. He’d normally lift her, but his wrist would be ruined. Geraldine buries her face in the crook of his neck. Charlie relaxes, for once.

GERALDINE

(Mumbling)

”Hey, sunshine.”

CHARLIE

(Soft)

”Hi, mom.”

They stay like that for a little while.

Violet looks at this display of parental affection like most other people would look at a real live unicorn if it were walking down the street. That’s real? People can do that?

Geraldine ends the hug and puts a hand to her son’s cheek.

GERALDINE

”Let’s go home, all right?”

Charlie nods.

CHARLIE

”Okay.”

He straightens. Geraldine walks out the door and waits for him. Charlie hesitates. He looks at Veruca.

CHARLIE

”I- see you later?”

VERUCA

”Mhm. Later.”

They look at each other. Both want to say a better goodbye. Neither of them does. A beat, and then Charlie turns around with an awkward smile on his lips and leaves, closing the door behind him.

Veruca sighs.

**INT. An elevator, The Earth Hotel.**

Veruca and Violet stand side by side in the hotel elevator. The counter above the floor buttons counts up. None of them say anything. They both look tired, to different degrees. Veruca studies her messed up makeup in the elevator mirror. Violet looks like she’s counting down the seconds until she can get out.

When the floor counter gets to six, the elevator stops and the doors open. Violet gets off.

Veruca looks up.

VERUCA

”My room is right upstairs, if you want that makeover.”

Violet does not care, nor does she turn around when she answers.

VIOLET

”Okay. Bye.”

**INT. The Beauregardes’ room, the Earth Hotel, midnight.**

From inside the hotel room, we see the door unlock and open. Violet enters, closes the door, and kicks off her shoes.

She yawns and steps into the hotel room proper, ready to finally get a full night’s sleep. Two single beds stand next to each other, headboards to the wall. Room service has been here since they left for the factory. The beds are made. Violet collapses on hers and stares at the ceiling, just taking in the quiet.

Slowly fading in, _Overwhelmed_ by Royal & the Serpent starts playing.

Then, she rolls over on her side and gets her phone, lying on the nightstand. It’s dead. Five days of inactivity will do that to a battery.

She looks around for her charger, but doesn’t find it. She rolls over on the other side, and it all hits her.

Scarlett’s side of the room, save for the bed, has been left in the exact state she left it. Makeup litters the nightstand. Half of the clothes Scarlett brought have been unpacked and then discarded in a pile on the floor, because they weren’t going to give Willy Wonka the right impression. Violet still has no idea what that means.

She finds her charger on top of the clothes pile and plugs her phone in.

It vibrates. Violet unlocks it, and is instantly flooded with notifications. Hundreds of them. Thousands of them, even. Old ones from the day of the tour, with well wishes from people she doesn’t know. More recent ones, strangers asking where she is and why she hasn’t left yet.

And then, the ones from the past few hours. There are so many of them. Just looking at the notifications puts Violet on edge. She navigates to a message app, and just as she opens it, Cornelia Prinzmetal pops to the top of the list.

CORNELIA PRINZMETAL: haha omg is this u

CORNELIA PRINZMETAL: how tf did this happen

CORNELIA PRINZMETAL: ig u’ve still got gum chewing but this is so gonna end ur pageant career who’s gonna vote for a paintball accident

CORNELIA PRINZMETAL: no offense xoxo

There’s a link in the first message. Violet breathes through her nose and clicks it. She immediately wishes she hadn’t.

It’s an online article. The title reads _”Something happened to Violet Beauregarde at Wonka’s and we’re obsessed”_. Underneath, there’s a picture from outside the factory. It’s just Violet sitting by the heat lamp, but Violet barely realizes it’s her at first. There’s something inherently surreal about seeing herself from this perspective. There’s something even worse about knowing the rest of the internet has seen it, too.

People know. People are laughing, speculating, pointing out the irony. It makes Violet’s joints lock and her muscles tense and even though time reads 12:45 at night and she’s had an exhausting day, she can’t sleep. She won’t ever be able to sleep again.

She’s a freak, and the world agrees.

End _Overwhelmed_ at the cut.

**INT. Veruca’s suite, the Earth Hotel, midnight.**

Veruca opens the door. This room is several tiers fancier than Violet’s, with potted roses on marble end tables and a somewhat excessive amount of ornate armchairs.

Veruca stands still with the door open for a few seconds, just breathing. Then, there’s a hand on her shoulder.

A shadow darkens the doorway. Without hesitation, Veruca grabs the closest vase of roses and tosses it at the shadow. It gives her enough time to slam the door shut and dash for the hotel room phone. She scrambles to dial it, eyes fixated on the door.

There’s a loud knock.

VOICE (ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DOOR)

”There’s no need to be scared, Miss Salt.”

This, of course, does not work. Veruca was in the vents listening to people assuring her they’re mostly harmless for long enough to never believe sentiments like this ever again. She picks up the phone and listens to the dial tone. It’s not dialing fast enough.

VOICE (CONTINUED)

”My name is Candy Mallow. I work for Arthur Slugworth. I’m just here to collect the footage, and then I’ll leave.”

Veruca hesitates, but hangs up. She sets her jaw and marches up to the door, opening it just enough to poke her head out.

CANDY MALLOW does not look like a debt collector. Honestly, she looks like she came right from the set of an old talkshow, with a fluff of short blonde hair and a garish pink pantsuit. On the floor in front of her, there’s a mess of shattered porcelain and sad roses.

Veruca surveys Candy Mallow and decides she’s not dangerous. Probably. She lets the door glide open a little bit more and crosses her arms in the doorway.

Candy Mallow holds out a hand for Veruca to place her phone. Only, Veruca doesn’t have it any more.

VERUCA

”My phone is with the authorities. Putting Willy Wonka in a maximum security prison should take priority here.”

Candy Mallow nods. She has an excellent poker face. Her expression could mean anything. A beat, and then she raises her chin to peek over Veruca’s shoulder.

MALLOW

”Miss Salt, where is your father?”

VERUCA

”Perished.”

MALLOW

”Hmmmm. That complicates things.”

Candy Mallow straightens her blazer a little bit.

MALLOW

”Miss Salt, Arthur Slugworth and the Slugworth Corporation will not be willing to let this debt slide. Either you get your phone back, or you come up with funds equal to the amount your father was loaned.”

VERUCA

”I didn’t make this stupid deal.”

MALLOW

”But it was made with you in mind. And you’re Rupert Salt’s only heir. If your father really is... perished, everything passes to you.”

VERUCA

”And also, in case you couldn’t tell, I’m not a business person. I don’t balance the books, I have no idea where I can even get-”

Veruca legitimately doesn’t know where she could get the money from. She didn’t pay attention to her dad’s business classes, on the rare occasions she let him give them at all.

Candy Mallow does not listen.

MALLOW

”You have a week. Come up with payment, or... let’s just say Arthur Slugworth has connections, and very few reservations about what to do with them.”

Then, Candy Mallow gives Veruca a smile that can only be described as feminine and walks away. Veruca is left standing in the doorway, tired and on edge with no idea how to get an exorbitant amount of money in five days.

**EXT. Jopeck’s news stand, 5:15 in the morning.**

Sitting inside his news stand, MISTER JOPECK is a robust man with a grey pompadour he should be too old to pull off. He has a newspaper open and is reading it. Although we can’t see the headline, we can see the name of the paper: THE TREATICETOWN GAZETTE.

Jopeck doesn’t look up when he speaks.

JOPECK

”You don’t need to take a stack today, kid.”

Reverse shot, and we see Charlie standing opposite Mister Jopeck down on the street. In the background, two teenage girls finish up their chat before getting on their bikes, bags of newspapers slung over their shoulders. Charlie has a bag just like it. He does not have a bike with him.

CHARLIE

”I- thank you?”

Mister Jopeck looks up from the newspaper.

JOPECK

”Because you’re dismissed.”

In the background, the teens take off in opposite directions. In the foreground, we see Charlie go through several stages of grief as what Jopeck just said sinks in. He stops on bargaining. There’s something desperate in Charlie’s eyes now.

CHARLIE

”Mister Jopeck, whatever I did, I can explain-”

JOPECK

”Four days of unreported absences, and now you show up with a broken arm. How are you going to ride a bike in a cast, lad? How are you going to throw the newspapers?”

Charlie looks down at the cast. He knew this was going to happen. Why was he so stupid?

Behind Charlie, we see a teenage boy approach (by teenage boy, we of course mean he’s played by an actor years out of college). This is TOMMY TROUTBECK: probably not white, definitely muscular. There are small but noticeable shadows under his eyes, and with them, what should be a regular handsome jock turns into something edgier.

Tommy only gives Charlie a passing glance before heading up to the side of the news stand. Charlie is too caught up in his worries to really notice.

CHARLIE

”I don’t know-”

Jopeck puts the newspaper down on the counter in front of him and leans forward, clasping his hands.

JOPECK

”While you were gone, we had to fill the hole you left. Turns out it’s easier on the finances for the rest to bike a little bit farther and be paid a little bit more than it is to keep you on payroll.”

CHARLIE

”I couldn’t leave, I couldn’t reach the outside, I didn’t- I did not choose that, I’m a good worker, those four days don’t speak for me,”

Mister Jopeck indicates the newspaper, sprawled open in front of him. Behind Jopeck, Tommy picks up a stack of newspapers and starts putting them into his messenger bag.

JOPECK

”So I’ve read. Hi, Tommy. Look, it’s nothing personal, Charlie.”

CHARLIE

”Please, I need this job- I’ll walk, I’ll get here an hour earlier and I’ll walk the route, jog, run, even out the time... skateboard, I can learn how to skateboard, that way I’ll have my hands free... Mister Jopeck, please,”

Jopeck sighs and looks down, thinking.

Charlie looks at him in desperate anticipation. Tommy, exiting the news stand, greets Charlie with a nod. Charlie gives Tommy a smile in return, but it’s not a genuine one.

Jopeck looks back up. He shakes his head once. There’s nothing he can do. At least, nothing that would make his business run better.

JOPECK

”You’re a good kid, Charlie, but good people don’t always get what they deserve. Your arm is a perfect example of that.”

Charlie would cry, but he’s dehydrated. He had a tough night last night. Behind him, Tommy puts on a hood before getting on his bike and riding away.

Jopeck hmmm’s and then gets something from behind the counter. He then leans over to Charlie, holding out a ten dollar bill.

JOPECK

”Here. Get yourself some breakfast. You’re a human beanpole.”

Charlie looks miserable. A beat, and then he takes the bill, looking at it like he’s being paid hush money.

Jopeck waves for Charlie to go somewhere else and then picks up his newspaper again. He holds it higher, this time, and now we can see the headline clearly. ”THE CANDIED ESCAPE: POLICE NOT TO DISCLOSE INFORMATION”.

**INT. Veruca’s luxury suite, the Earth Hotel, 5:50 in the morning.**

Veruca sits in front of a mirror, applying a fresh coat of makeup. The makeup she wore for the tour deteriorated as living conditions did, and she’s barely slept tonight. Everything calls for a new face.

The hotel stationary phone rings. For a split second, Veruca tenses, but she quickly realizes she’s not hearing the opening bars of _Everybody Talks_. She’s not in a metal tube right now. She’s safe in her hotel room.

She gets up and picks up the phone.

ANGINA (OVER THE PHONE)

(Also has a British accent)

”Vee-Vee, darling!”

Veruca sighs.

VERUCA

(Dry)

”Hello, mother.”

ANGINA (OVER THE PHONE)

”I heard about the tour. Are you okay?”

ANGINA SOL, formerly Angina Salt, has a high, kind of giddy voice. How much is how she actually speaks and how much is because she’s speaking to Veruca in particular is up to personal interpretation.

Veruca walks along the wall to sit in an armchair by the window. The phone cord stretches behind her.

VERUCA

”Was trapped in a factory for almost a week, broke my custom stilettos to use as weapons, inhaled so much dust I might as well be a hoover, watched dad be murdered, developed claustrophobia, forgot my mink coat: you know, the normal stuff.”

ANGINA (OVER THE PHONE)

”Awwwwww, I loved that mink coat. What do you say we get you another one, okay sweetie?”

Veruca frowns and looks out the window.

Through the glass, she sees a woman and a boy walking up the street to the hotel, arms closed tight to protect from the cold. Their clothes aren’t warm enough.

VERUCA

”Are you going to dig up another priceless heirloom- I don’t want a new one, I’m not going to endorse animal cruelty so you can feel better about abandoning your daughter.”

ANGINA (OVER THE PHONE)

”How about another designer bag, then?”

A beat.

Veruca isn’t a child anymore. She knows why her parents spoil her. It started out as rich people being rich people, but it got worse alongside their marriage, and now Veruca gets showered with gifts by two people who don’t know how to apologize for things they’ve yelled in her presence without putting a shiny bow on top.

Well. One person, now.

Veruca isn’t a child anymore, but despite knowing the gifts are all meaningless gestures, she’s weak. When she’s been whisked away to Canada or Russia or wherever her mother lives now, nobody she knows will be able to call her out for taking the bribe.

VERUCA

(Low)

”Okay.”

ANGINA (OVER THE PHONE)

”Oh, Oleg and I are so excited to see you. We’re redecorating the largest guest room with all your favorites.”

Veruca rolls her eyes when Angina brings up her new husband. _Oleg_. _The salt mine tycoon_. There’s something ironic to be said about Angina exchanging a wealthy husband named Salt for a wealthy husband who deals in salt, but Veruca’s said it a hundred times before and it’s never made her less repulsed by the idea.

VERUCA

”Mother, you are wasting your time with a man whose name can be rearranged into a kids’ toy.”

She’s never met Oleg - she hasn’t seen her mother in real life since Angina left for the Bahamas with her divorce settlement - but she’s seen pictures on Instagram. She hates him. Both of them, really, but Angina buys tolerance with the gifts she sends, so she’s on thin ice.

ANGINA (OVER THE PHONE)

”That’s not very nice, angel. He’s a good man.”

Through the window, the boy and woman are close enough for Veruca see that it’s Charlie and Geraldine. Charlie gives his mother a hug and then says something, holding out a bill. Geraldine shakes her head and touches her son’s cheek before heading towards the hotel and out of view.

Veruca’s face softens as she sees Charlie. She gets a little bit sad. Then, she stands up and walks back to the base of the stationary.

VERUCA

”Second marriages are more likely to end in divorce. I’ll call you back. Cheers.”

Before Angina can say goodbye or try to defend her love of Oleg, Veruca hangs up the phone. Then, she goes over to her bed, collapses on the messy covers, and screams into the nearest pillow.

**INT. A hallway, Treaticetown High, morning.**

_Beautiful Faces_ by Declan McKenna plays in the background.

The camera moves down a typical hallway in Treaticetown High in slight slow motion. Cool jocks in turquoise green and steel grey varsity jackets give each other bro hugs and joke about the latest game. Girls crowd around lockers and whisper, occasionally looking up at the camera with stunned looks.

From the other direction, we see Veruca Salt walking down that very hallway. Sporting an elaborate crystal necklace, sharp eyeliner, and a high-necked rose pink dress, she makes jocks gawk and girls gape.

Coming out of slow motion, we see Charlie Bucket at his locker. Inside it, he’s holding the ten dollar bill Mister Jopeck gave him. He fiddles with it, and then sighs, hiding it behind a math book and closing the locker behind him.

Fade the music out. Veruca sidles up to the locker next to him, and starts to say something. As she does that, Charlie is pinched by the shoulder fabric of his shirt and turned around by MIRANDA MARY PIKER.

As Miranda Mary speaks, Charlie grows visibly anxious, or intimidated, or both. Behind him, Veruca watches.

MIRANDA MARY

(Fast and clear)

”Charlie! I have a proposition: the cavity rate at our school has been steadily rising since that awful ticket campaign. Seeing as how that didn’t go well, you should hold a presentation. Talk about how eating chocolate only leads to bad things. It would-”

VERUCA

”You’re really going to exploit what was very clearly a traumatic event to get teenagers to brush their teeth? Classy.

Miranda Mary Piker has extremely straight hair pinned back by a grey headband. Right now, she’s smiling at Veruca with the kind of intensity only a true goody-two-shoes can harness. She holds out a hand.

MIRANDA MARY

”Hiiiiiiiii, Miranda Mary Piker, student council president. I don’t believe I’ve seen you around school before?”

Veruca steps forward. Her high heels make her just taller than Miranda Mary. She does not shake the hand.

VERUCA

”Veruca Salt. You know who I am.”

MIRANDA MARY

”Mhm. And did you know Treaticetown High has a strict students only-policy, making exceptions only for guest presenters and members of the PTA?”

VERUCA

”I did not! And did you know Treaticetown High has absolutely no signs making that clear?”

Charlie’s caught between Veruca and Miranda Mary, all but pressed to his locker. He clutches the books he needs for next period to his chest. Charlie _likes_ that Veruca always speaks her mind. Miranda Mary’s always been kind of daunting. Whenever she wants something to happen, it does. Charlie will end up holding this presentation, and he’ll hate every minute of it.

So yeah, he’s happy Veruca’s standing up for him. If that is what she’s doing. It’s hard to tell. Charlie’s probably hoping for too much.

Miranda Mary tilts her head 30 degrees to the left.

MIRANDA MARY

”I hadn’t noticed! I’ll make sure to take it up with my dad, right after I tell him you’re trespassing!”

Veruca takes a deep breath.

Right as she does, two jocks walk up. WILBUR RICE is the quintessential high school jock, tall and muscular with effortlessly perfect red hair. This actor would have gotten the lead if this show wasn’t based on a book with a malnourished protagonist. Behind Wilbur is Tommy Troutbeck, exuding bad boy charm. Wilbur puts an arm around Miranda Mary and goes in for a kiss.

WILBUR

”Hey, babe.”

Miranda Mary turns her head so he kisses her cheek instead.

MIRANDA MARY

”Hi, Wilbur.”

Veruca crosses her arms and steps closer to Miranda Mary, throwing Wilbur a quick look before fixating on his girlfriend.

VERUCA

”And your dad is?”

MIRANDA, WILBUR, AND CHARLIE

(A sliding scale of excitement)

”The principal.”

VERUCA

”Oh, so this is all nepotism.”

Tommy and Charlie exchange a glance, totally separate from the conversation happening in front of them. It’s an acknowledgement, kind of. Neither of them look very happy.

MIRANDA MARY

”Says the girl whose father abused his position as CEO to get his precious little angel a ticket to a chocolate factory. It makes sense. It’s not as if you would do good in his actual company.”

VERUCA

(Bitch mode)

”My father is dead, you ignorant besserwisser. Why is a fine jock dating the textbook definition of a buzzkill?”

Miranda Mary nuzzles into Wilbur’s side and looks up at him.

MIRANDA MARY

”Are you really gonna let her talk to me like that, Wilbur?”

CHARLIE

(Loud)

”So I’ve got to get to class!”

Charlie transfers his books to on top of his cast and uses his now free arm to grab Veruca’s shoulder. He carefully drags her away from Miranda Mary and her two jock body guards. Veruca unenthusiastically comes with him.

CHARLIE

”I will escort Veruca off the premises on the way, and I will do the presentation. Yeah? Yeah. Good talk.”

**EXT. Just outside by the door, Treaticetown High, morning.**

They exit onto a wide stone platform leading down to a set of steps. Charlie closes the door behind them and puts his books on the ground. Veruca paces like she doesn’t know what to do with herself.

VERUCA

”Is it just me, or does the outside world suck?”

CHARLIE

”It’s not just you.”

Veruca finally settles with leaning on the wall just by the door. She stares up at the sky.

VERUCA

”There’s just- so many people want things from me right off the bat, and nobody _sees_. The factory was messed up!”

She gives a frustrated huff and then makes eye contact with Charlie. Her hands grasp at nothing as she tries to gesticulate abstract feelings.

VERUCA

(Frustrated)

”Like, every time I close my eyes I’m pressed to the ceiling and my dad is screaming and the weird part is I didn’t want to care, but now, nobody does, and I just have to listen to them talk about money that isn’t even tangible, it’s just numbers in a bloody bank account, numbers can’t be more important than a person’s life,”

She stops. Shakes her head. Puts on a fake smile and plays the beautiful little porcelain fool.

VERUCA

”It’s whatever. You know what, I think I’m just peeved about my stilettos. They were expensive. That’s a reasonable thing to be upset about. Not stupidly emotional, but like, you know. Money.”

Charlie walks over and also leans on the wall. He’s close enough that their shoulders brush against each other when they move too much.

CHARLIE

(Quiet)

”I don’t think that’s stupid. You know that.”

VERUCA

(Dropping her facade)

”Yeah, sorry. Thank you.”

They stay leaning for a beat, breathing in the cold February air. Then, Veruca kicks herself off the wall and walks backwards to the center of the staircase.

VERUCA

”Hey, at least you’ve still got both your parents!

Charlie follows her.

CHARLIE

”You know what I’ve also gotten? Fired.”

VERUCA

”What?”

CHARLIE

”Turns out I needed to report my absences while we were trying not to die.”

Charlie’s gone from pure grief to a kind of anxious ”this might as well happen”-attitude about the whole thing. Whenever he gets something good, something equally bad has to happen. With the ticket, it was Willy Wonka’s murder agenda. With escaping, it was losing his job.

The moment Veruca hears about the absences, she turns furious. Charlie appreciates it. Someone has to be mad at Mister Jopeck, and Charlie does not have time for anger.

VERUCA

(Would already be on the phone with her lawyer if she hadn’t turned her phone in)

”They don’t get to just do that, that’s not how it works- do you want me to pull strings? Because I’m not above pulling strings, Charlie,”

Veruca doesn’t usually call Charlie by his first name. She calls him Bucket, all depersonalized and formal, as if they have a strictly professional relationship. Charlie completely loses his train of thought when she doesn’t. Acutely aware that his cheeks are getting hot, he steps closer to Veruca so that his words can actually sink in.

CHARLIE

”Don’t pull strings, ’Ruca, I don’t want the help-”

VERUCA

”And I don’t want you to starve.”

She doesn’t raise her voice. Just says it, plain and simple. It’s not an argument, not an assertion, just a fact. Veruca Salt doesn’t want Charlie Bucket to starve.

Her hand is on his upper arm. The one with a cast. It’s gentle.

They’re standing so very close. Veruca has these long, dark eyelashes, and Charlie wonders how they would feel on his face. Charlie’s hair is messy but Veruca wants to make it worse, to see how bad she would tangle it if she ran her fingers through it.

They start to pull towards each other.

Then, the door inside opens and a gaggle of teens exit, heading outside for generic teen activities. Charlie and Veruca are suddenly a whole door’s length apart. When the teens are out of sight, Veruca clears her throat and Charlie gets his school supplies from off the ground.

CHARLIE

”Well, I’ve. Got class, so...”

VERUCA

”Yes and I’ve... got to leave before your student council president sees me trespassing and smites me for my insolence.”

CHARLIE

”Cool. Bye.”

VERUCA

”Bye.”

Charlie hesitates, and then heads inside. Veruca mentally scolds herself. Is it for wanting to kiss Charlie or for not kissing Charlie? You decide. Probably both.

**INT. Lunch break corner, the mixing room, Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, mid-day.**

Mike’s arms are filled with various sweets. He dumps it all on the bench attached to the wall and dusts off his hands.

MIKE

”Courtesy of the edible furniture room.”

The Frau gives Mike a concerned smile as she serves herself half a butterscotch chair leg and a handful of chocolate checker pieces.

FRAU

”Just be careful out there, Naseweis.”

MIKE

”What are they gonna do, tickle me to death?”

Mike grabs a long strip of edible wallpaper, rolls it into a thin stick and puts it in his mouth. It pokes out like a cigarette. Joe, sitting on another bench, gives a disapproving look but doesn’t say anything.

The Frau grabs an extra portion of edible household items and hands them to Joe. She sits down next to him. Mike plops down on the floor and opens his laptop, absentmindedly chewing wallpaper.

For a moment, they all eat in silence. Then, Joe pipes up.

JOE

”I do have to say, there’s something strange about the timing of it all.”

Mike and the Frau are listening. The Frau because it’s polite, Mike because he doesn’t have headphones. He tries to focus on what he’s doing - digging up that blasted coughing file - but Joe just keeps talking.

JOE

”For those last couple years, none of us ever saw Wonka with any women. He was too caught up in Mister Pondicherry’s ideas to bother. Of course, he had Junior and Junior is the spitting image of him, so there must have been a secret lady. Junior would have been born around the time he... dismissed us, you know?”

FRAU

”I wonder where she is now.”

Mike chews up the last of his edible wallpaper.

MIKE

”Loving the conspiracy fodder, Joe, but Wonka the first just kind of sounds like a douchebag.”

Joe is absolutely appalled. At Mike’s manners, always. At Mike’s blatant disrespect of the best boss Joe has ever had, even more so.

JOE

”Language! He was not!”

Mike shifts how he’s sitting so that he’s facing Joe. He shrugs noncommittally.

MIKE

”I’m just picking up what you’re throwing down, my guy. Sounds like he closed a whole ass factory to focus on family. Douchebag move. Both of the Wonkas suck, end of discussion.”

Joe grumbles something unintelligible. Mike goes back to his hacking deep dive. The Frau dwells on Mike. He spent a lot of time with Violet before the latter escaped - and as happy the Frau is that Violet’s out of the factory, she knows she can’t let the girl vanish out into the world without getting help for her. Maybe, just maybe, Mike noticed something.

The Frau sincerely hopes so.

**EXT. By the football field, Treaticetown High, afternoon.**

Later that day, Charlie is walking home. He’s walking past the football field today. Taking a detour. That way, he doesn’t have to go through the center of town, where the factory is.

On the other side of a chainlink fence, football players throw balls and run laps. Wilbur Rice, carrying his helmet under one arm, scores a home run and then dedicates it to Miranda Mary, who’s studying in the bleachers. The whole scene is incredibly high school.

Charlie stops and looks at it all from the wrong side of the fence.

Like a shadow, Tommy Troutbeck appears on the football side of the fence in his football jersey. He takes a big swig out of a water bottle.

TOMMY

”Hey, sorry about the bike route, man.”

CHARLIE

(Surprised Tommy’s even talking to him)

”What, no, it’s- it’s fine.”

Tommy holds something out. Charlie looks down. A twenty dollar bill, just for Charlie to take.

CHARLIE

”Whoa, Tommy, I can’t- you also need this, I’m not that much worse off than you are, you shouldn’t be throwing away your own hard earned money, that’s...”

Despite being popular, and a star athlete, and guaranteed a one way ticket out of here after graduation, Tommy isn’t rich. He’s a layoff kid. His family was hit just as bad as the Buckets were. Charlie doesn’t know the details, but there’s a certain solidarity in knowing they have the same struggles at the end of the day.

Tommy steps closer to the fence. He glances around to make sure the other football players aren’t watching.

TOMMY

(Low)

”My brother got a commission, and whoever it was, it’s a big one. The royalties have been rolling in. I have more spending money now. These are new shoes.”

He gestures to his feet. Charlie looks at Tommy’s new shoes.

CHARLIE

”Oh, awesome shoes.”

It’s been years since Charlie had new shoes. The ones he’s wearing now are Grandpa George’s old boots, a size too large and one misstep away from losing their soles. Charlie gets just how big a luxury new shoes are.

When Tommy holds out the twenty dollar bill again, Charlie just shakes his head. It’s not that he doesn’t want the money. Honestly, he’d take money from pretty much anyone right now, but not from Tommy. Not from a member of the Vermicious Knids.

CHARLIE

”Look, it’s a principle thing. Last time we took money it didn’t end well.”

To be clear, it ended with Jack Bucket in police custody. He just barely got probation, on top of fines so big just thinking about them takes the air out of Charlie’s lungs.

Tommy scoffs. He has a very good ”so what?”-face. If Charlie didn’t already know about the Troutbecks’ economic situation, he would chalk Tommy up as a rich confident jock and never think about it again.

TOMMY

”Screw principles. Knids protect their own, right?”

CHARLIE

”But I’m not in the Knids.”

TOMMY

”Might as well be.”

Charlie swallows. He can almost see his dad’s gang days play out in front of him. He never wants to relive that again.

CHARLIE

(Steely)

”Dad quit.”

Tommy laughs. He pokes the twenty dollar bill through the chainlink fence.

TOMMY

”I’m not asking you to deal, Charlie. Hoffa isn’t gonna show up with a whole ass bag of narcotics because you took a twenty.”

He raises an eyebrow. Charlie hesitates, and then takes the bill from him. It doesn’t feel right, but then again, it never does.

Tommy takes another long swig from his water bottle and then starts jogging on the spot.

TOMMY

”Now, scram. I’ve got a reputation to uphold.”

He runs back to the field, instantly turned back into a perfect high school archetype. Wilbur tries to wrestle him.

Charlie is still on the wrong side of the fence. He counts the money people have handed him today. Thirty dollars. That’s good, all things considered. Combined with what little grocery money his mom can spare, they can afford flour. That’s also good. It means they can save even more money by baking their own bread. It goes on like that. Charlie mumbles instructions just to make sure they stick. At this point, it’s routine.

While Charlie’s doing that, we see Veruca come in to frame. From the looks of it, she’s just been wandering aimlessly. When he doesn’t notice her, she walks up and taps his shoulder.

CHARLIE

(Mumbling)

”If I don’t spend the rest, we can keep baking our own through March. Either that, or set it aside, but then-”

VERUCA

(Curious)

”What are you doing?”

Charlie all but jumps.

**INT. The Beauregardes’ room, the Earth Hotel, afternoon.**

Song playing in the background: _Producer Man_ by Lyn Lapid.

The curtains are drawn tight. If the sun is shining outside, we have no way of knowing. Scarlett’s things lie untouched, cluttering up the floor. There is only one light source in this room: Violet’s phone screen, lighting up her face as she lies on the side under the covers of her bed.

She hasn’t gotten up. Hasn’t slept. Hasn’t changed her clothes, even though she’s been in the same ones for six days now. It’s not like anything in the whole room would fit her. It’s not as if anything could make her look away from the screen.

People are talking. People haven’t stopped talking since the images started going up. Strangers are constantly messaging Violet. She diligently reads every single word but never replies, and in turn, the messages get crueler.

Violet is paralyzed. Couldn’t move if she wanted to. The only thing she can physically bring herself to do is to scroll and swipe and tap, scroll and swipe and tap. And the worst part isn’t even the things people are saying about her, the endless stream of theories and jokes and mockery, but the fact that she isn’t exercising. She needs to lose weight. She should be moving. She shouldn’t be still for even a second.

At least she’s not eating. Scarlett would be proud.

Violet wants a mother’s hug.

Not Scarlett’s, because truth be told, Scarlett was never a hugger. Violet just longs for the concept. The warmth and safety of snuggling up with someone who genuinely loves you. She pulls the duvet closer.

End _Producer Man_ at the cut.

**INT. A supermarket.**

Veruca and Charlie are in a supermarket. Charlie presses a head of lettuce to his chest with his cast, and carries a bag of potatoes with his functional arm. Veruca looks at the things in the store with what can only be described as befuddlement.

VERUCA

”If I were to, say, buy dinner for myself and cook it at your place, and then share it because it would be impolite not to, would that be fine with you?”

CHARLIE

”Will you expect something back if we eat your food?”

VERUCA

”I would never.”

And Charlie believes her. He knows it could get financially complicated fast, and he definitely doesn’t want that to happen, but if she’s also having the food there’s some level of plausible deniability. There are things far worse than hanging out with Veruca and getting free food. It’s one meal. The budget won’t budge.

Veruca starts looking at the stock with actual purpose. When they walk past the meat counter, she actively stops to look at the meats. Charlie stands to the side and debates whether or not to say anything. Beggars can’t be choosers, and the like. But also, Charlie did not beg for this.

CHARLIE

”So like, you’re buying for yourself and I have no input whatsoever, but my family won’t be able to eat that if you share.”

Veruca looks at him over her shoulder and raises an eyebrow.

CHARLIE

”We’re involuntarily vegetarian.”

Veruca abandons the meat counter.

VERUCA

”How does one become involuntarily vegetarian?”

CHARLIE

”The body needs to have a specific, like, bacterial culture to break down meat, and if you don’t have meat for long enough, those bacteria just kind of die. And we can never afford meat, so.”

He shrugs. When his shoulder moves, the precariously held head of cabbage slips over Charlie’s cast and begins to fall, only to be caught by Veruca. She casually holds it in one hand, almost like Hamlet with his father’s skull.

VERUCA

”Wow. Wow, okay. And if you do eat meat?”

CHARLIE

”Last time I did, Miranda Mary Piker had to escort me to the middle school nurse. Bad time.”

Charlie can count the amount of times he’s had meat in his life on one hand, and he’d have more than one finger left over. He doesn’t consider it a luxury. Not like he considered chocolate a luxury. Chocolate has never given him stomach cramps.

It has trapped him and cost him a perfectly well paying job, though.

Veruca hands him the cabbage back and walks a couple steps backwards, moving farther away from the meat counter.

CHARLIE

”But again, I have no input. You buy whatever you feel like eating.”

Veruca smirks cryptically. She scans the shelves until finally, she opens a freezer and picks up a box.

VERUCA

”I’m feeling like tempeh.”

**INT. The Bucket residence, later, evening.**

We see a counter in the Buckets’ kitchen. Ingredients have been placed on it in a disorderly yet visually appealing way. Veruca has very clearly snuck in more ingredients to ”share”. Center of it all is the accursed tempeh, unpacked from its frozen packaging, weirdly imposing despite literally just being a block of fermented soy.

VERUCA (OFF SCREEN)

”I have no idea how to cook tempeh.”

Reverse shot, angled up from where the tempeh would be lying. Charlie and Veruca are standing in the kitchen. Charlie gives Veruca a look and Veruca raises her hands in a defensive half shrug.

VERUCA

”What? The servants do all the cooking at the manor.”

Charlie can’t help but smile at just how far away from his life Veruca’s is. She has servants. And a manor. That’s insane.

CHARLIE

”Oh, you’re Spoiled spoiled.”

Regular camera levels. Charlie opens a drawer and gets cooking supplies - a kitchen knife, a cutting board, a pot that used to be shiny twenty years ago but couldn’t reflect the sun today. Veruca punches his castless shoulder softly.

VERUCA

”Shut up. I can turn on a stove. Admittedly because of my excellent deductive reasoning skills, but it counts.”

She leans on the counter and watches as Charlie reads the back of the tempeh packaging.

VERUCA

”Mind teaching me the basics, if you’re such a master chef?”

Charlie looks up, still holding the packaging.

CHARLIE

(Faced with the reality of cooking something new)

”I can literally only cook variations of cabbage soup.”

In the other room, the elders sit in their bed and listen.

VERUCA (OFF SCREEN)

(Having the time of her life)

”Wow. And here I was, thinking you were supposedly the Next Big Thing in the culinary industry.”

CHARLIE (OFF SCREEN)

(Also having a great time)

”Soup-osedly?”

VERUCA

(God, she adores this boy)

”Oh, shut up.”

The elders all exchange knowing smiles. This is what Charlie should be doing. Being young, talking to girls. They’re happy he’s got that, even just for a moment.

**INT. The elder’s bed, the Bucket residence, late evening.**

Later, Charlie and Veruca sit on chairs by the elder’s bed. Geraldine is also there, on a chair of her own. Everyone has a plate. Veruca’s has some scraps left over, but everyone else’s has been scraped clean. Candles have been strategically placed around the room and then lit, because the Bucket household can only afford fifteen minutes of electricity per day.

People are having a good time. Geraldine picks up a plate from a fourth, empty chair and passes it to Charlie. Charlie doesn’t take it.

CHARLIE

”We’re saving that plate for dad.”

A beat. The adults exchange looks as if they all know something and Charlie doesn’t. Charlie immediately starts to worry. Geraldine puts the plate back on the chair and turns to face her son, hands clasped in her lap.

GEORGE

”We have to tell you something.”

Veruca reads the situation and gets that she’s intruding. She stands up.

VERUCA

”Well. Is it okay if I use your phone to call a taxi, or? Because I can walk, in theory.”

Charlie nods. Electricity is sparse, but he’s not going to make her pay for it, not when she’s already bought food. Technically for herself, but Charlie thinks of it as a silent debt anyway, just for peace of mind. She buys tempeh, she gets their last few minutes of electricity. A fair trade.

CHARLIE

”Yeah, go ahead.”

Veruca nods and heads into the other room. Charlie turns to his family. He lowers his voice so Veruca won’t overhear from the other room. The walls don’t have insulation, so they’re remarkably thin.

CHARLIE

(Keeping his voice down)

”What’s going on?”

The adults brace themselves.

GERALDINE

”Sunshine...”

GEORGINA

(Keeping her voice down)

”Jack hasn’t been home since you headed to the factory.”

Charlie blinks. He almost doesn’t register it. For a brief moment, he’s in Everyday Life-mode, as if he’s been out here the whole time and the factory was just a blip. Then he remembers that actually, it’s almost been a full week since he went in.

Which is way too long for Jack Bucket to be gone.

GERALDINE

(Keeping her voice down)

”We thought he was just job hunting, but then the days went, and-”

CHARLIE

(Keeping his voice down)

”He’s gone back, hasn’t he? To the Knids?”

There’s silence around the bed. Charlie puts his face in his free hand.

GEORGE

”At least he’s providing. Been a while since the last time.”

Georgina kicks George under the covers of the bed and tries to comfort Charlie.

GEORGINA

(Calming)

”We haven’t heard from him, Charlie. We don’t know.”

Charlie takes his head out of his hands. He looks on the verge of crying, as he so often does.

CHARLIE

(Anxious, keeping his voice down)

”You haven’t seen him for a week! If he’s gone to the Knids and you haven’t heard anything- he could have gotten in trouble! He could have been arrested! Or worse, he could be- be lying dead, in an alley somewhere, and then what do we do, we can’t afford a funeral,”

Through the wall, there’s the sound of Veruca closing the door and leaving. Everyone relaxes a little bit. They’re notfully relaxed, but there’s less pressure to keep it together.

Geraldine holds out the plate again. She smiles comfortingly.

GERALDINE

”Sunshine, they’d tell us if he was in jail.”

CHARLIE

(Angry)

”Well, that narrows it down!”

Immediately, Charlie regrets snapping. He takes the plate and pokes at the food. Ten minutes ago, he was proud of it. Now, not even the memory of Veruca sitting on the kitchen counter can scare away all the worries, the worst case scenarios in which his family can’t claw their way back from his father’s mistakes. And the worst case scenarios in which he never sees his father again.

Charlie slowly looks up.

CHARLIE

(Sad)

”He promised he’d stop, mom. He said he was done.”

Geraldine doesn’t say anything. Instead, she gets up and gives Charlie a big side hug. Charlie leans his head on her shoulder and looks absolutely miserable.

**INT. The Earth Hotel lobby, night.**

Violet slips a coin in a vending machine coin slot and presses button number seven.

She’s standing in front of a vending machine in the hotel lobby, somewhat hidden away by a large potted plant with palm-looking leaves. She’s wearing a hotel bathrobe that’s two sizes too small and has let her long blonde hair out in an attempt to be discrete. If people see the blue blush on her skin, they might start asking questions. Or worse: taking pictures.

The lobby is quiet and empty, though. Almost serene. In the distant background, _Orinoco Flow_ by Enya plays softly.

The vending machine takes forever to drop the gum, but eventually, it does. Violet crouches down and has her hand down the pickup box when she hears the doors open.

She looks up, and it’s Veruca. Just Violet’s luck.

Violet, still crouched down, stays still and quiet as she watches Veruca through the leaves of the potted plant. She’s headed for the elevators.

Then, Veruca looks around just a degree too far and stops walking.

VERUCA

”Violet, my bluety, long day no see!”

Violet sighs and pulls the stick of gum out of the pickup box as Veruca heads over. There’s a bounce in her step, and considering the fact that she’s wearing 4.5 inch heels, that probably warrants some sort of medal.

VERUCA

(Dreaming)

”Just got over from Charlie’s. He taught me how to use an oven. I know how to oven things now.”

Violet puts a stick of watermelon gum in her mouth to get out of talking. Veruca leans her head on the side of the vending machine. She looks happy. Blissful, almost. There’s a distinct glow in her eyes. Violet looks at this new agreeable Veruca like she’s been possessed.

VERUCA

(Lovestruck)

”Oh my god, he’s just so... _good_ , Violet. He makes me think human connection isn’t ultimately futile, you know?”

Veruca’s eyes sparkle. If Violet didn’t have the gum, that sparkle would drive her into a meltdown. Because nobody cares about Violet like that. Nobody ever will. Not with this unlovable body.

But Violet does have gum, and she’s chewing it, and she feels centered already. Her feelings are in check. The hunger gnawing at her stomach is kept at bay. Violet has no idea how she’s survived this long without the stuff.

Veruca reaches out and touches Violet’s arm. Violet freezes on the spot, suddenly acutely aware of how large it is.

VERUCA

(Genuine)

”I know we started out very ’friends for show’ but like, all my hangout offers still stand, if you want to go for an ’actual friends’ type thing.”

Violet chews her gum in silence. Watches the spot where Veruca’s hand touches her arm. Does not answer.

Veruca pushes herself off of the vending machine and raises a perfect eyebrow.

VERUCA

”Maybe tell me what the deal is with you and Mike? Because the teais you’ve made out? Several times?”

Oh, yeah. Mike. Violet had forgotten about him.

She probably misses him. Misses how he makes her feel, anyway. After all, if Mike wants to kiss her, that means she’s still desirable. If Mike wants to kiss her, it means her body is still okay.

It doesn’t matter how she feels about him personally. Which is that he’s fine. Snarky, but he can be funny sometimes. Smart enough to crack what he made very clear was a complicated system. Scarlett always put emphasis on finding a man with brains - and yes, she hated Mike, but she’d have completely changed her mind if she’d been around to see him hacking. ”Go for a smart one”, she used to say. ”If you play your cards right, he’ll settle us for life.” Us. Because Scarlett didn’t play _her_ cards right when she had the chance.

Violet chews in silence for several seconds before stepping out of Veruca’s reach.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”You’ve heard everything.”

And then Violet walks away.

Veruca watches her go. Slowly, she realizes Violet’s in a bad place. Nobody who’s doing fine wears a bathrobe when going to a public space. She grows visibly concerned, but doesn’t follow.

**EXT. The bleachers by the football field, Treaticetown High, midday.**

Charlie and Veruca are sitting on the bleachers. It’s sunny outside, in that kind of crisp winter way. Between them, there are mostly empty takeaway containers. Veruca pokes at her rice and tofu as Charlie refills his paper plate. We gather that Veruca’s ”bought food for herself and then shared” again.

Charlie chews vegetarian curry like it’ll vanish if he doesn’t eat it fast enough. Veruca’s eyes wander from the soft tangle of hair sticking out from under his knit hat to his face. He’s worried. She can tell. She’d bump his shoulder, but the takeaway containers keep her from sitting as close as she’d like to.

VERUCA

”You can talk to me, you know? It’s not fair if I’m the only one unpack ing my emotional baggage in this relationship.”

Charlie shallows what he’s chewing and looks at her. Just looks at her. Then, he adjusts how he’s sitting so his legs are angled in her direction.

CHARLIE

”There’s this gang, the Vermicious Knids. They were formed as a reaction to Wonka firing all his staff, a kind of way for all those employees to have a stable source of income even if the job wasn’t entirely... legal.”

Charlie has a hard time looking at her, just from the weight of it all. He looks out over the football field instead. It’s empty. The artificial grass is unnaturally green against the snow.

CHARLIE

”Anyway, dad went to them after the toothpaste factory laid him off. We’re a layoff family, so they kind of have to ’help us’. It didn’t go well, but he’s been missing for a week now, and...”

Veruca can fill in the blanks herself. She nods and also looks out over the football field.

A beat, and then she speaks.

VERUCA

”Where do these Vermicious Knids hang out? Like, what’s their Thénardier’s Inn?”

CHARLIE

”There’s a nightclub, Loompaland.”

Veruca looks back at Charlie, brows furrowed in recognition. There’s something familiar about the name Loompaland. She’s heard about it before, somewhere.

Charlie keeps talking without clocking Veruca’s recognition.

CHARLIE

”It’s drug dealer central, but if you don’t have money and want to party, it’s where you go. It’s their home base. Not officially, but everyone knows it is.”

VERUCA

(Remembering)

”Wait, one of the Squirrels mentioned Loompaland. In the factory. Something about missing karaoke night?”

Their eyes meet, processing this semi-important clue.

Veruca scoots over and puts her hand on Charlie’s. Charlie thinks he might die just from the feeling of her skin on his. Veruca does not notice, because she’s too busy formulating a plan in her head.

She smiles like an angel with a vendetta. Her eyes sparkle and Charlie has absolutely no idea how he’s still alive when Veruca can look that pretty.

VERUCA

”Let’s take a vacation to Loompaland.”

**INT. By the window, the mixing room, Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, afternoon.**

Mike is sitting in his usual spot, immersed in whatever he’s doing on the computer. The Frau walks up.

FRAU

”I’d like to talk about Violet.”

Mike briefly glances up but doesn’t stop what he’s doing. He sets his jaw and answers automatically, expecting the full conversation.

MIKE

”Yes, we’re a Thing. Hold the applause.”

FRAU

”She... I don’t think she’s happy. I need to get through to her, but I don’t know how. Do you?”

The Frau doesn’t want to know about Mike and Violet’s Thing. It’s a Thing, not a relationship, because they never talked about definitions. It was all makeouts and stilted conversations and silently keeping each other company. Never definitions.

The Frau looks at Mike in anticipation, expecting some big clue about Violet’s mental health she’s completely missed. Mike can’t think of anything.

MIKE

(Has not picked up on Violet’s larger issues)

”Nope. Not a clue. Haven’t unlocked those dialogue options yet.”

FRAU

”But you spend a lot of time with her.”

Mike puts his hands up in a static shrug.

MIKE

(Defensive)

”Again, we’re a thing. Are you gonna turn on the aggro because I have a girlfriend, kind of, but don’t know everything about her? Gonna fricking interrogate me like you’re a dad from some second-tier high school rom com- my mom makes me watch those, by the way. I’m not a damn wuss.”

How does Mike feel about Violet?

Nothing. He feels nothing. He should. He will, he’s sure of it. He’s seen enough YouTube videos to know that it’s all about propinquity. The more time you spend around someone, the likelier it is you’ll catch feelings. If he sticks out another week or two with her, he’s gotta start feeling something. Of course, it doesn’t really matter what he feels. It’s not as if he’s expecting some grand love story. His parents don’t even like each other, and they’ve been married for twenty years. Mike would settle for that, honestly. As long as he feels something. As long as he’s normal.

The Frau sits down. She looks kind and concerned.

FRAU

”I just want make sure she’s okay.”

MIKE

”She’s fine. We’re fine. Everything is perfect.”

The Frau frowns.

FRAU

”Naseweis, you don’t seem particularly enthusiastic.”

Mike hunches a little lower. He clicks and types and drags like his hands have minds of their own.

MIKE

(Defensive rambling)

”No, I’m thrilled. I have a girlfriend, kind of. Love that. Love girls. Don’t love her, but like, that’s because we’re so new and if there’s anything rom coms have taught me it’s that it’s all about the burn. She likes me. I? I definitely like her. Gonna do all that good boyfriend stuff. Gonna have to drive all the way down to Florida to give her a corsage for prom. It’ll be great. It’s great. We’re great.”

He doesn’t look up at the Frau once while talking. If he did, he’d immediately get even more defensive. The Frau has very clearly sensed something’s up. She’s not going to say anything. Confronting Mike about whatever he’s burying will only work once he’s ready to talk about it. But her face is all motherly concern, and Mike would recoil from it like a cat who’s just been splashed with a bucket of water.

Mike stops talking just as he sees something on his computer screen. His eyes light up.

MIKE

”There’s the bastard. This, Frau G, is why I’ve been on the grind. Behold: the coughing file!”

Mike opens the file triumphantly.

His computer breaks. It starts lagging something massive. There’s a painful sounding, lung tearing cough, and it overloads the computer so bad the audio starts cutting out. The computer battery drains at an alarming rate, and when the screen updates, there’s a 1% battery warning. The computer fan is so loud it might as well be a strong wind. Then, the screen goes dark.

The Frau looks confused. Mike blinks, and then touches the keyboard. He recoils. It burns to the touch.

MIKE

(Reconsidering his options)

”So my computer just got KO’d.”

**INT. The Beauregardes’ room, the Earth Hotel, afternoon.**

From the dark screen we left the factory on, fade in Violet’s hotel room. It’s dark. The curtains are still drawn. Violet is once again paralyzed in bed and fixated on her phone. She chews gum as routinely as normal people breathe.

Then, there’s a loud knock on the door.

VERUCA (IN THE CORRIDOR)

”Rise and shine, we’re going clubbing!

Violet groans and lies still. The knocking persists.

VERUCA (IN THE CORRIDOR)

”Violet, I only get louder! I will recite the entirety of Little Women, don’t test me!”

Violet takes another few seconds to enjoy the silence. No, enjoy isn’t the right word. Violet is not in the place mentally to enjoy anything. She just lets there be silence. Veruca’s going to flip things upside down as soon as she gets her will through, Violet just knows it.

Then, she drops her phone on the sheets and gets up. She creeps to the door and, after a final moment’s pause, opens it.

Veruca raises an eyebrow.

VERUCA

”Have you heard of this strange new invention called light? Preferably of the sun variety?”

And without so much as an invitation in, Veruca marches into the room and opens the curtains. Violet drags herself after Veruca.

The light shows us just how bad a state Violet is really in. Bags under dead eyes, dry lips, unbrushed hair. The blue only makes her look worse, emphasizing all the wrong parts of her face. She still hasn’t changed clothes. Her hoodie is visibly dirty.

VERUCA

”Oh, please take offense to this. You look awful.”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”We’re”

”Not friends”, Violet is about to say, but Veruca snaps around and talks over her until it’s clear Violet isn’t going to get a word in.

VERUCA

”Gonna postpone whatever excuse you intend to drop on me and get you fixed up. Bloody hell, you look like you’re dying!”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”I don’t want-”

”You here.” ”Your sympathy.” ”Help.” So many options. Violet doesn’t use a single one of them, because Veruca grabs her arm and starts pulling.

VERUCA

”Shut up. Take a shower.”

Veruca is not strong. She’s physically fit, but she is not strong. She has the right technique, though, and sometimes that’s better. She drags Violet to the en-suite bathroom, practically shoves her over the threshold, and then leans on the shut door to make sure Violet can’t escape.

VIOLET (IN THE BATHROOM)

(Chewing gum)

”Let me out.”

VERUCA

”The worse you look, the worse you feel, blue-ty queen.”

Yeah, exactly. That’s why Violet’s been isolating herself. Because her body looks awful. No amount of running water will wash the blue out of her skin, and no soap will scrub the extra fat off.

A beat. Then, a deep sigh from the other side of the door.

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”Fine.”

We hear a click as the bathroom door locks. Veruca stops leaning on the door. Once she hears water start running on the other side of the door, she abandons it completely.

She flips through Violet’s open suitcase, lying on the floor next to her bed. Everything is too small. She looks up, and Violet’s phone is right there on her bed. It lights up. The lock screen is filled with notifications. Veruca furrows her eyebrows. A cursory glance at these notifications tells her things are bad online.

She gets up. Knocks on the bathroom door. Loudly.

VERUCA

(Making up an excuse to snoop around)

”Hey, what’s your passcode? I haven’t been online for a full week!”

We hear the water stop running.

**INT. Lunch break corner, the mixing room, Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, late afternoon.**

Mike’s laptop rests on a bench. A single, definitely edible flower rests on top of it. It’s accompanied by an equally edible light bulb, because Mike wouldn’t want to seem gay by mourning his dearly departed computer with flowers and only flowers.

Reverse shot. Mike stands facing the bench. He has a hand on his heart. His eyes are closed. His expression makes it look like he’s only mourning ironically. He isn’t. To his left, the Frau is doing her best to support Mike’s grieving process. To his right, Joe gets more confused about Mike’s whole deal every minute.

MIKE

”F in the chat for my laptop. May his battery stay chill in computer heaven.”

The Frau nods solemnly, even though she doesn’t know what ”f in the chat” means. Joe does not play along.

JOE

”What happened?”

Mike opens his eyes and takes his hand off his chest.

MIKE

”The coughing file happened. Is it some kind of overpowered super virus? Is it an anti-griefing security mechanism that was just camping out? Is this why the system is so messed up? To account for a file so intense it instakilled my computer?”

Joe doesn’t get it. He is an extremely poor man who got fired from his last stable job before the World Wide Web had its first web server. He looks at the Frau in confusion. The Frau is happy to explain.

FRAU

”He opened a file that was making noise and it was too much for the computer, the poor thing.”

She pats the laptop gently, as if it were a tired dog. Joe nods. He kind of gets it.

MIKE

”Whatever BS Wonka’s tempering up, I need a new computer to even look at it!”

Mike starts walking away, towards the exit. The Frau follows for a few steps before she stops.

FRAU

”Where are you going, Naseweis?”

Mike turns around. Shrugs. His eyes gleam with morbid curiosity. It’s a scarily perfect look on him.

MIKE

”Getting a new computer. Natch.”

**INT. The Beauregardes’ room, the Earth Hotel, late afternoon.**

Violet exits the bathroom. She’s wrapped in a white hotel towel. Her hair is loose and unnaturally straight in the way long hair gets when it’s wet and you brush it. She is exactly as blue as she was when she was forced into the bathroom, but it’s more pronounced now.

Veruca’s sits on Violet’s bed with one leg on top of the other. She’s on Violet’s phone, savoring every second of screen time.

VERUCA

”I got you clothes.”

There’s a pile of clothing on the bed next to Veruca, neatly folded and sorted by type. Violet doesn’t know whether to be angry or to be confused or to thank her.

VERUCA (CONTINUED)

”Figured you wouldn’t have anything in the right size, so I got someone on staff to run and pick up a select list of things.”

This feels out of character.

Violet looks through the clothes. She cringes at the sizes, hates that that’s how her body is described now, but otherwise they’re fine. Better than squeezing into undersized ones and seeing just how big the difference really is.

VIOLET

”Thanks?”

VERUCA

”Don’t mention it.”

Violet doesn’t. She reaches behind her ear and gets the gum she started last night. Veruca tries her best not to gag. She succeeds.

A beat, and then Veruca puts Violet’s phone down and turns serious. She has a serious mode. Violet had no idea.

VERUCA

”Look, I’ve seen the things people are saying.”

Violet very intentionally doesn’t look Veruca in the eyes.

VERUCA (CONTINUED)

”They’re assholes. It’s not funny commentary, it’s thinly veiled fatphobia, so if that’s why you’ve been hiding up here... don’t?”

VIOLET

(Chewing gum)

”You do not get to decide what I do with my life.”

VERUCA

”But Willy Wonka does?”

Violet stops chewing. She stares out of the window, just to have something to look at that’s not Veruca. People keep confronting Violet, and she’s not here for it. She’s fine. She knows what she needs.

VERUCA

”Fading into obscurity isn’t going to stop people from talking. It’s just gonna make you feel worse about yourself.”

Veruca moves across the bed so she’s right next to Violet. Violet sees a cloud shaped like a wad of gum and pretends to be extremely interested.

VERUCA

”Stop caring so much. Come clubbing with us. Dance the night away, just this once.”

Veruca can afford not to care. She’s rich and pretty enough to make anything go away. Violet doesn’t have that luxury. People want talent and beauty and Scarlett made her hone both. She’s been rated by panels of judges for as long as she can remember. Removing the part of her that cares what people think would be like removing a vital organ - Violet doesn’t know how she’d function without it.

But when Veruca holds up a shiny t-shirt and dances it up towards Violet, she’s tempting enough to break through. Violet would love not to care. Just for a night.

Violet abandons the clouds and faces Veruca.

VIOLET

”Just this once?”

Veruca grins.

VERUCA

”You won’t regret it, pop star.”

**EXT. Loompaland, night.**

This is Loompaland: Distant music flows out of an open metal door. Adults in leather jackets lean against brick walls, smoking and giving anyone who looks like an outsider judging glares. Above the door, there’s a gigantic neon sign reading ”Loompaland”. On one side of the text, there’s another neon sign with a palm tree, the stripes of the trunk interchangeably turning on and off with the beat of the music.

Looking up at the sign, the three teen’s faces are illuminated artificial yellow and toxic green. Charlie dreads going in. Veruca looks forward to going in. Violet has no particular feeling on going in, but she feels more alive than she did in her room, and that’s something.

CHARLIE

”He’s probably not even in there, he’s... He might have gotten home by now, or-”

Charlie moves to turn around and leave. Veruca hooks an arm around his to keep him in place.

VERUCA

”Oh, where’s your sense of adventure?”

CHARLIE

”I pawned it. So I wouldn’t have to work for these people.”

Veruca squeezes his arm affectionately.

VERUCA

”You survived five days in that awful chocolate factory. You’ve got this.”

**INT. The Loompaland dance floor.**

Fake leaves hang heavy from the upper level of the bar, overlooking the dance floor. The walls are covered from toe to tip in chalk drawings of lush bushes and hidden jungle cats and cacao beans hanging from Theobroma branches. A small crowd of people are living it up on the dance floor, lit up by purple spotlights. _Someone To You_ by Banners blasts from a large pair of speakers on either side of the DJ booth.

Veruca leads Charlie and Violet through the crowd on the dance floor like a true expert. Violet eyes everything. The lighting makes the blue blush of her skin almost normal. She’s finally wearing new clothes - a t-shirt that actually fits her underneath a wool-lined denim jacket.

Charlie looks around as if anything could jump out and attack him. He accidentally bumps into a man with his back turned and is about to apologize when he sees the print on the back of the man’s jacket: an amorphous blob with bright white eyes and sharp teeth. Above, it says VERMICIOUS. Below, it says KNIDS.

Charlie’s eyes go wide. He catches up to the others.

Veruca finally stops on the edge of the dance floor, right by a pillar. She turns to the other two.

VERUCA

”So, Violet, I seem to remember you promising me a dance.”

Violet blinks. Veruca tilts her head in a ”go on”. Violet doesn’t want to listen to Veruca more than she absolutely has to, but she’s already come all this way. Dancing is exercise. Exercise is good.

VERUCA

”Come on, you’ve got it. This? This is your dance floor.”

She bobs her head along to the music in an attempt to get Violet more into it. Charlie watches Veruca hype up Violet with admiration, or adoration, or some cross between the two.

Violet dances. She’s pretty good at it.

VERUCA

”Yes, go! Show them who’s boss, girlboss! Own it!”

Veruca looks back at Charlie, eyes twinkling.

VERUCA

”Join me?”

She holds out a hand, if Charlie wants to take it. He does. Oh, he does.

In something like a montage, we see them dance. The color of the lighting changes with every cut.

On blue, Veruca twines her fingers with Charlie’s and tries to teach him basic dance steps. Charlie steps on her feet and immediately regrets it, breaking out into a series of incoherent apologies. Veruca just grins and steps on his foot in return. That shuts him up. Charlie has a hard time relaxing. Veruca thinks she has all the time in the world to teach him how.

On yellow, Veruca has her arms around Charlie’s neck. She mime-counts the beat (”One, two, three, four, one, two, three, four,”) as she guides Charlie back and forth.Charlie’s going along, but not really paying attention. He’s too busy looking at the way Veruca’s mouth quirks when she smiles. He thinks he’ll grow old watching that smile.

On pink, their foreheads bump together. They laugh it off, but they don’t pull away, giggling until both of them are extremely aware of how very close they are. Veruca slowly twists Charlie’s hair around her index finger. Charlie relaxes into her embrace and leans in closer. Their noses touch. Every second is so slow, so precious.

On red, they’re kissing.

It’s that kind of unreal kiss that slows time. The dance floor is a slow blur around them. They could stay like this forever.

But the ceiling lights turn on soon after, and the moment is lost. When _Someone To You_ ends, there isn’t a next song. Veruca pulls away from Charlie and stands as far away from him as is appropriate between two friends.

Behind the turntable, the DJ adresses the crowd. He’s wearing a green and orange caterpillar head as a DJ mask. Its electronic eyes cycle through four different expressions.

DJ OOMPA

”You’ve been a great crowd tonight!”

The crowd cheers.

DJ OOMPA

”Now, please enjoy this playlist, courtesy of my awesome little brother.”

The DJ presses a button on the turntable and then walks off the stage, arms raised victoriously above his mask. _Salt_ by Ava Max starts playing. The crowd gives one last cheer. Most of the dancers leave to get drinks.

Charlie is looking at Veruca. Veruca is avoiding eye contact like a magnet avoiding another magnet of the same polarity. The tension between them could be used as a trampoline.

CHARLIE

”I... ehm...”

Veruca swallows whatever thought she’s having and turns to Violet, way too enthusiastic.

VERUCA

(An octave higher than she normally would have said this in)

”Violet, queen, you were slaying out there!”

Charlie gets that Veruca doesn’t want to talk. It’s fine. Yeah, it’s fine. She just has intimacy issues. It’ll be fine. Yeah. He steps onto the dance floor, looking around.

VIOLET

”No I wasn’t.”

VERUCA

”Wow, hashtag humblebrag. Don’t devalue yourself like this, you were killing it! Tearing it up! Giving Adèle Varens a run for her money!”

Charlie’s eyes are drawn to the back of the nightclub. In a far off corner, he sees Tommy Troutbeck pull DJ Oompa into abro hug. Tommy’s wearing his Knids jacket. He’s always been secretive about this sort of thing. Seeing him flaunt it so proudly makes Charlie’s stomach churn.

Veruca is showering Violet with compliments in the background. The sound of her voice gets more and more muffled, until we can only hear the music.

Tommy is chatting with the DJ, occasionally leaning in and hunching his shoulders in a way that implies a low tone of voice. The DJ nods, and then raises a hand to either side of the caterpillar head. He takes it off.

Just as he does, the spotlights turn back on. The whole nightclub is lit up a calming light blue. So is the DJ.

Charlie’s seen this man in this lighting before. Standing above an aquarium. Lit up by the water. Looking down, straight at him.

The DJ was in Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory.

Charlie marches across the dance floor. Tommy gives him a cool nod.

TOMMY

”Charlie, glad to see you’ve finally joined the swarm.”

Charlie ignores Tommy and goes straight for the DJ.

CHARLIE

(Conspiracy theorist ramble)

”You were there. How were you there? How are you out here, why- why were you there, who let you in, are- are you with him, were you working for him?”

The DJ looks at Charlie with the worst poker face in the entirety of this tv show.

DJ OOMPA

(Better at lying than keeping a neutral face)

”I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

TOMMY

”Why are you yelling at my brother, man?”

CHARLIE

”This is your brother?”

Veruca walks up. Her arms are already crossed. Charlie moves right next to her without thinking about it. He’s struggling to keep his thoughts coherent as is.

VERUCA

”What’s going on?”

CHARLIE

”He was in the factory, above the aquarium when I stayed back, just watching as we almost got- he’s in on it, he’s one of _them_ , he’s with Wonka, he was there,”

TOMMY

”Mind your own business.”

Violet walks up as well, just in time to see Veruca poke Tommy in the chest and narrow her eyes so thin they could slice him into sandwich ham.

VERUCA

”This _is_ our own business, Artful Dodger.”

Violet stays behind Charlie, just to be safe. Charlie’s head is spinning, but finally, he gives Tommy a ”please let this be a long shot”-look.

CHARLIE

”Where’s my dad?”

Tommy still looks confused. His brother’s poker face somehow gets even worse.

Charlie looks at them, practically sparking with anxiety.

CHARLIE

”What did you do to my DAD?”

TOMMY

(Getting aggressive)

”We don’t know where your useless dad is.”

CHARLIE

”Don’t call him useless.”

TOMMY

(Being aggressive)

”You have Knid loyalty, but that doesn’t mean I can’t put you in a matching cast.”

Tommy lunges forward towards Charlie to be intimidating. His arm is raised in a fake punch. Veruca grabs it and twists it back before Charlie can flinch. Tommy wrenches himself out of Veruca’s grip halfway to the ground and stumbles to his feet. Behind him, adults in gang leather jackets put down their drinks and start to approach, ready to put the trouble makers in their place.

Tommy takes a step forward with every intention of fighting back, when suddenly, there’s a young man between them. He’s latino, handsome in a polished way, with thin glasses and slicked back hair.

STRANGER

”Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down, friend.”

With a flick of his wrist, he brings out a shiny badge.

STRANGER

”It’s hard when people mess with your territory. With your family. I get it. But it would be even harder if a report of all the illegal goings on tonight found its way into police hands, no?”

Tommy inhales, and then mutters something under his breath. The adults return to their drinks. Tommy grabs his brother and leaves, vanishing through a door behind the DJ booth. Before he slips through the door, though, he gives Charlie the rudest stink eye a teen gang member could ever give.

_Salt_ ends, fading into generic party music without licensing rights. The stranger makes the badge vanish with another flick of his wrist and turns to the teens.

MARVIN

(Friendly)

”Marvin Prune. I’ve been assigned to keep an eye on you. It’s supposed to be secret, though, so don’t bring it up. The superiors would not be happy. Charming.”

MARVIN PRUNE gently takes Violet’s hand and kisses it, like a true gentleman. Violet is transfixed.

Veruca moves a little further away from Charlie. Charlie notices and puts it down on his ever expanding list of things to worry about.

Marvin smiles at them. He has a very charismatic smile.

**INT. Production walkway, Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

Mike is going to find a new computer, and he’s going to do it whether he gets discovered or not.

He sneaks his way down the production walkway. The chocolate river flows gently in the canal next to him. Mike had forgotten the river existed for a little bit there, but now that he can see it he finds it very stupid. It’s an OSHA complaint waiting to happen. There’s just a matter of time before some idiot takes a dip and contaminates the whole thing.

Behind him, there’s a creak and the sound of footsteps.

Just in time, Mike dives through the Inventing Lab door. He leaves a crack, though, and it lets him peek down the rest of the walkway.

At the very end of the walkway, a metal door opens. A man in a squirrel mask exits. We recognize him as the Squirrel Boss, but Mike does not know about the factory hierarchy and just sees some guy.

The Squirrel Boss heads deeper into the factory hallways. The metal door slams shut behind him.

In a closeup, we see the bright orange letters across the door. They read ”GOBSTOPPERS”.

Mike notes this.

**INT. Inventing Lab Central, Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.**

The ceiling lights are down in the lab. Various machines are still on, lighting up the darkness with dim spots of white or red or green.

Mike is making his way through the labyrinth of machines, looking around for a computer. He eventually finds one, a hefty stationary computer that appears to be built directly into the wall. It has a big chunky start button that glows red. He presses it and settles into the closest swivel chair he can find.

The computer probably hasn’t been replaced since the factory shut down, but it’s hooked up directly to Wonka’s system. Mike recognizes the janky code instantly. He’s willing to try anything at this point. A file can’t completely wreck his computer and then expect to be left alone.

Mike retraces his cybersteps. He digs up the file in a matter of minutes, of which we only see a few seconds in an action-packed hacking montage.

MIKE

”Okay, file. Let’s see what kind of virus you’ve coughed up.”

He double clicks it.

We see Mike’s face as it opens. In the background, we hear a hacking cough. No, not a cough, but a choking. Come to think of it, it almost sounds like someone’s drowning. Mike’s eyes slowly widen.

The file’s head is covered in chocolate, save for a spotless, perfect circle on the back of it where it didn’t break the surface. He’s on his hands and knees at the bottom of the screen. He desperately tries to breathe, but no matter how hard he coughs, he can’t get the chocolate out of his windpipe.

It’s Augustus Gloop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> Candyman is at a point where most things that need to be set up have been set up. The puzzle pieces are in place. In other words, things are about to go down. 
> 
> The writer's room sincerely appreciates all comments and interaction! For user Charlie_Choc_Fan in particular, the writer's room is glad you enjoyed 'Shlafe mein Prinzchen'. Don't mourn your Augustuses just yet.


End file.
